Paradise City
by winterschildren
Summary: Callie Jordan has just been through a tragedy, so, she does what any normal young woman would do... She packs up her things, and she moves to Vegas. Totally normal, right? She might be in over her head when she meets her new neighbor, who just happens to be a WWE Superstar.
1. Prologue

**So, I'm just playing with a few ideas right now, and feeling you guys out.**

**If you like it, the way it's written, and think it could become amazing, let me know.**

**I personally, have a good plan for this, but I'm still unsure about it.**

* * *

Nothing would have prepared me for that phone call. It wouldn't have mattered if I was sixteen, twenty-three, or sixty-five. I would have never been ready for it.

Thursdays were my favorite nights to work. It was "Regulars Night", where the entire roster of regulars came in and had drinks together and sang karaoke. The atmosphere was always great; a tiny little bar, wedged in between a bowling alley and an Applebees, and filled to the brim with Hank Williams singin' rednecks. They didn't tip for shit, but they were always nice, and they loved me.

February 20, 2014.

I remember that night for two reasons; first because Stephen, our bartender, sang She's A Brick House by The Commodores, and everyone loved it. He even started taking his shirt off, but stopped because he's a very hairy man, and the crowd began to 'boo' him.

And second because Officer Peter McHannon called me and told me that my parents were dead. When he first told me, I could barely hear him over the music, and thought that I wasn't hearing him correctly. I asked him to repeat himself twice.

Both times he said the same thing.

_"I'm sorry, Ms. Jordan, there's been an accident."_

Suddenly the room fell quiet. Time stopped. I could hear my heart pounding in my ears. My stomach felt like it had dropped to the floor and there was a knot in my throat the size of a cinder block.

When I say that nothing would have prepared me for that, I do mean it. It felt like a joke at first, and I even laughed and said, "Come on now, my parents aren't dead". The drive to the hospital felt like hours, when it was only fifteen minutes away, and I was going twenty-seven m.p.h over the limit. I kept thinking to myself, this isn't real. It couldn't have been. These things only happen to people you just happen to read about in news articles that pop up on your Facebook Newsfeed. You feel sorry for them, and you pray, and move on. This doesn't happen to people in your town, or your friends, and it certainly isn't supposed to happen to you.

But it does.

And it feels like drinking gasoline and swallowing a match.

Nothing could have prepared me for that.


	2. Everything Must Go

**Author's Note:**

**Again, it'd mean a lot to me to know what you guys think...**

**Seriously. You guys supported me a lot on Sempiternal, I'd appreciate it if you did it again.**

* * *

The house was lifeless. It had been that way for days now.

The only thing that might've held any life were the bouquet of Calla Lilies that James got me that sat on top of the wooden stand by the door, but even they were drying out; I hadn't even bothered to put them in a vase.

It felt like years since I had stood in the living room, when only yesterday I was moving out all of the furniture and dropping it off at Goodwill. I sorted through the mail that piled up on top of the hutch in the kitchen, and it was mostly junk, if I was lucky there were a few unpaid medical bills. The floor had been swept, mopped, and shined. The windows had been cleaned. And finally, a colorful banner that read, 'WELCOME', in big, metallic letters hung over top of the opening into the dining room.

Everything else was gone.

I kept the big screen, two of my dad's old bar stools that we used in the breakfast nook, the record player, the records, and the Keurig. Somewhere online is an article titled "11 Simple Rules On What To Do When Your Parent(s) Die", writing down everything you remember about them is rule #1, and since I wasn't the writing type, I moved on to rule #2; throwing away all of their crap. It wasn't easy. For the past twenty-two years, I had watched my parents work hard for us to be able to have nice things, and here I was pawning it, or dropping it off at a Goodwill.

My best friend, James, was there when he could be, helping me through it. "Don't." He said, when he saw me trying to stash a couple of my moms old dresses that smelled like White Diamonds; her favorite perfume. The first night I cried myself to sleep in my mother's closet. Boxing up all of her business suits and church dresses felt so wrong. Almost as if I was going to get in trouble for it. Any moment she'd come through the door and jump down my throat.

"What about this?" I asked, James, as I held up one of my dad's old concert t-shirts. "It's ACDC, my dad was at this concert."

He looked up at me and gave me a lopsided smile. "Why not?" He asked. "I mean, it's ACDC."

Selling the house was by far the worst part, though, and I still wasn't sure I was making the right decision. Everywhere I looked was another memory playing out in my mind; when they renewed their vows in the living room, when Jared broke up with me and my dad and I made s'mores in the fireplace, the cake fight in the kitchen on my twenty-first birthday, having 'sock-sliding' competitions with James in the hallway.

Looking around me, I realized, I didn't want to be here. And it wasn't just the house. It was everywhere I went. It was the entirety of Wallman, Tennessee. There wasn't a person in this town without pity in their eyes when they looked at me. I couldn't go to the grocery store without someone mouthing 'I'm sorry' to me in the checkout lane.

My parents died.

I didn't need a constant reminder.

"You don't want to stick around? The new owners will be here soon." My thoughts were interrupted by the realtor who stood in front of the circular mirror that hung on the wall next to the door.

I looked at Bette; her white hair curled perfectly on top of her head, pink lipstick, and crisp, navy blazer looked close to perfect. She helped my parents pick out this house when they first moved to Wallman. I hadn't even been born yet, they weren't married. Just two "crazy-in-love teenagers" as she like to put it. She had stayed in contact with them after they moved in, being the only person who they had known in the tiny town of only 262 people, and welcomed them into her family with open arms.

"You know you don't have to sell the house." She spoke again. "You could stay here, raise your own family, just like your mom and dad did."

Her words repeated themselves in my head a few times. I sighed, giving her an uneasy look. We both knew I couldn't stay. Being in this house was painful. Knowing that I'd never come home and see my dad at the stove frying some trout, and never smelling my mother's perfume as she passed by me in the hallway as I did my laundry, and that I'd never hear my dad yelling at his TV because the Predators lost another game. I didn't want that.

I shook my head reluctantly.

She shrugged her shoulders. "Well, I tried."

I smiled. "Thank you, Bette. Thank you so much. Make sure the new owners take care of this old place for me." I told her, squeezing her in a tight hug.

"You know I will. Please be careful out there, and keep in touch."

I took another long look around the living room one more time, taking in a deep breath. James honked at me, reminding me that it was time to go. As I walked across the lawn to his old pick up truck, I felt like the house was attached to me with a short, rubber cord; like I'd snap back before I even reached the curb.

But it was time to go. I couldn't change my mind now.

I didn't say anything to James when I got in, just gave him a simple nod when he asked me if I was ready. I kept my eyes straight ahead as he sped off, not once looking in the rearview mirror. He put his hand on my knee, giving it a little squeeze.

"You can cry, you know?"

My voice cracked. "Yeah, I know." I whispered, trying desperately not to break down. I looked down at the plane ticket sticking out of my bag; a one-way trip to Vegas. At first, in Wallman, Tennessee, I was the fun and bubbly waitress who might discount your ticket if you were nice. Then I was that girl whose parents died. So why Vegas? A city refreshed with new people every week or so? No sad faces, no pity glances, and no one who even knew who I was? I could be anyone I wanted to be; a jazz singer, a teacher, a starving artist, or a master chef. It sounded perfect to me.

"You've got everything you need, right?" James asked me as we stood at the gate. "Ticket, phone charger, toothbrush, exit strategy in case this doesn't work out?" I playfully slapped his stomach. "Hey! I just want to make sure you're going to be okay. Las Vegas isn't Small Town, USA. It's a big place."

"I know, James." I reassured him.

"Just stay strong, okay?" He kissed the top of my head as I hugged him. James was my best friend. He had been my best friend since I could remember. If anyone could make me think twice about staying, it was him. "Go before I start crying too, please." He said. When I pulled away, he wiped the tears from my cheeks with the sleeves of his pullover.

"About that exit strategy," I said, taking a few steps backwards. "it's you."

He laughed. "Well, I'll always be here. I'm not fearless like you."

"I love you." I told him as the woman took my ticket.

"I love you." He called as I was shoved down the ramp.

As the plane ascended over my tiny town, I watched as it disappeared through the clouds. I'd be in Vegas soon. I'd be surrounded by bright lights and desert, women in huge feather costumes and tourists in Hawaiian print shirts.

* * *

**1\. What About Angels - Birdy**

**2\. Everything Must Go - Taking Back Sunday**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	3. Piece of Home

**Author's Note:**

**A hug thank you to the six people who reviewed. I believe I sent each of you a message expressing my gratitude. It seriously means so much to me. Whenever I start a new story, I'm always cautious about moving forward. I have this story planned out, just like I did with the last one, and I'm still shakey about it.**

**Anyways, throughout the story there will be flashbacks into Callie's past with her parents, which will be italicized.**

**Again, thank you for your support.**

* * *

I didn't choose Vegas. Vegas kind of chose me. It's cliche, I know that.

After James and I had finished my parent's room, we started taking everything out of the den. I found a fold-up map in my dad's desk. I opened it up and spread it out on the floor; smoothing my fingers over all the creases, and all the little holes where my dad had stuck push-pins in it. James was in the corner going through the records, asking me every so often if he could have one.

I couldn't pry my eyes away from that map, though.

_"What's up?" James asked as he joined me, dropping down to his knees beside me on the floor._

_"See all these little holes?" I asked. He nodded. "My dad went to all these places. He met my mom here," I said as I pointed to Abilene, Texas. There was a circle around the small town in red sharpie. It was my mom's hometown, and he had stopped there on his way to El Paso. "He told me about when he graduated high school he went on this crazy cross-country road trip with all his buddies before he went to college. My mom worked at this diner that they all stopped at for breakfast, and he said that he knew she was his soul mate."_

_James smiled. _

_"He didn't even introduce himself, they only talked when my mom took his order, and he left the next day; not knowing if he would ever see her again." The story of how my parents met was an unbelievable one. "Two months later she's sitting in his first biology class of the semester. She was accepted into USC, too. Isn't that crazy? Like they met in a diner, in a totally different state, and then bam! they're going to the same college." _

_It brought a tear to my eye just thinking about it._

_"How'd they end up here, though?" James asked. _

_Wallman, Tennessee was not the ideal place for two nineteen year old kids to end up spending their life. When my parent's moved here, the population was 256 people. There was a movie theater, an Applebees, McDonald's, Food Lion, Well's Fargo, and the bar that I would eventually end up working at, Miller's. If you wanted to go clothes shopping or needed to go to a Walmart, you would need to travel twenty minutes to Maryville, which still wasn't spectacular. _

_"They started dating three months after they 'met' in college, and in almost the same amount of time, my mom found out that she was pregnant with me. My mom had a scholarship, and she threw it all away for me. And my dad played football, and he threw that all away too. They couldn't raise a baby in a dorm, so they basically found a small town where the cost of living was cheap, and they moved here. They had me, they got married, and the rest is history."_

_I pushed myself up to my feet and picked the map up. James looked confused, but I just smiled at him and searched around my dad's desk for a couple thumbtacks. _

_"What are you doing?" He asked._

_As I pushed the last corner of the map into the wall, I picked on of the darts out of my dad's dartboard. "Finding a place to move."_

_"First of all, Cal, you're not moving. Second, what if it lands in the Bermuda Triangle or something? You gonna go live with the aliens?" _

_"James, I'm not going to argue about this anymore. I can't stay here. It's too sad." __I squinted my eyes, taking a few steps back from where I had been standing to give myself a wider range of places to choose from. London would be cool, Dubai, New Zealand... Anywhere but here._

_"Cal-"_

_I squeezed my eyes shut and tossed the dart. As I peaked an eye open, I noticed that it had landed in the Midwest, Vegas to be exact. And not just around Vegas, the dart stuck out of the red dot like a bulls eye. "Vegas."_

_"I call for a redo." James crossed his arms over his chest._

_"What? No."_

_"Best two out of three." __I sighed, taking steps back to where I had been standing before. I squeezed my eyes shut again, flicking my wrist, and lunging the dart forward towards the map. When I opened my eyes for the second time, I noticed James' mouth hung open. The dart landed on Vegas again. "You're cheating."_

_"James! You of all people should know that even standing three feet from the dart board, with my eyes wide open, I'm terrible at darts!"_

My parents believed in fate, and soul mates, and karma. And if they were here, they would tell me that something was pulling me towards Las Vegas. I had to go. Even after I explained that to James, he still tried to convince me that maybe this wasn't the best idea. I wasn't to be swayed, though. Even though I was terrified of the thought of leaving my hometown behind, and my best friend, and my childhood home, and all my parent's possessions, the thought of moving to a huge city thrilled me. What better place to re-invent myself than Vegas?

I had never traveled outside of Tennessee, much less been on a plane to a city with over 500,000 people.

I could see the busy streets from the plane as we flew over Sin City. My heart pounded in my chest as I gripped the arm rest, ready for the bumpy landing. As I stepped out of the double doors, I was shocked by the change of temperature. February in Tennessee was cold, not reaching over 45 degrees. In Nevada, it felt like a nice summer day where I was from. I immediately unzipped my jacket and stuffed it in my suitcase and stood at the curb, arms outstretched, hoping to hail a taxi; which I had never done before.

As I slid in the backseat of the yellow vehicle, I glanced forward at the driver. "Could you take me here, please?" I asked him as I handed him a crumpled up piece of paper with the address of my new apartment.

"First time in Vegas?" He asked.

I nodded, not able to tear my eyes away from the scenery around me.

"Visiting family?"

"No uh, no, I'm moving here."

"Moving here!?" He asked. "Where are you from?"

"Tennessee."

"Ahh, _I see_." I hated that joke. "Well, you're going to love it here! Warning, it does get very hot!"

I had found my apartment on Craigslist; a one bedroom on the top floor of a beautiful building that was about ten minutes from the strip. Everything was included, even an awesome pool and a fitness room. I emailed the woman immediately, and after a few days of talking back and forth, I sent her my security deposit and bought my ticket to Vegas.

When the taxi pulled up to the curb of the building I had familiarized myself with, a short, tan woman stood on the sidewalk with a big smile. I tipped the driver generously and slid out of the backseat of the car.

"Hi!" She was beaming from ear to ear. "Callie?"

I nodded at her as she moved to help me with my bags. "You must be Alisha, it's nice to meet you."

"Likewise! How was your trip?"

"The layover in Chicago was too long, but I made it."

"Well I'm glad that you did. Your furniture arrived this morning, and your car is parked in the parking garage on the first floor in your very own parking spot." She said cheerfully. I was thankful to hear that. "Now, if you look over to your left, you have your mailboxes. You're number 6B They're separated by floor. On each floor there is three individual apartments, except for the top floor, there are only two. And they're the biggest studio apartments you'll find in the area; nice and spacey."

"Yeah in the pictures they looked huge. Which is nice, because my hou- the house that I'm coming from was very small and crampy."

"Let's go tour the apartment and then I'll show you the fitness room and the pool, okay?" I nodded and followed Alisha to the elevator. She tried to make small talk, and asked me what it was like moving from Tennessee to Nevada, why I was moving here, and what made me choose Vegas.

_"It's usually a vacation spot. People don't tend to actually settle down here."_

The apartment was even bigger than portrayed in the pictures. The living room was huge, and overlooked the surrounding area; which wasn't much, but it was a nice view. Even with all of my boxes stacked in the middle of the floor, the room was still very large. The kitchen was small, but I didn't really do much cooking anyways, so I wasn't phased by it. There was a half bath in the hallway that led to the bedroom, across from the washer and dryer closet.

"And this is your bedroom. As you can see it's a good size." When Alisha said 'good size', she meant that it could fit three of my old bedrooms in this one bedroom. She walked over to a door and opened it, revealing a large walk-in closet that was equipped with a shoe rack.

I owned maybe three pairs of shoes; flip flops, flats, and a good pair of boots which I probably wouldn't be needing here. As for my clothes, I had what I could fit in the three suitcases that I brought with me. My style wasn't flamboyant. I wore a lot of jeans and plain t-shirts that you could buy in a three-pack at Walmart. When I was in high school, people used to say that's what they loved about me, "_the fact that I didn't really try". _I'm sure they thought that's what I was going for, 'the natural look'. I wasn't.

"I'm really not a clothes person." I said, looking down at my outfit; faded black skinny jeans and a grey v-neck. Meanwhile Alisha stood next to me in a white tank top with a flowing high-to-low skirt on. A big, chunky necklace hung from her neck, and her sandals had big glittery roses on them.

"Maybe you're a bathroom person, because this master bath is pretty spectacular." She offered. The bathroom looked even better than it did in the pictures. The marble counter tops were sparkling, the jacuzzi tub was huge, and the standing glass shower was bigger than I expected. "What do you think?"

"I love it." I replied.

"Good! I have a feeling you're really going to enjoy Vegas and all that it has to offer. Now, you do have a neighbor. He's a quiet guy, and isn't home very much. He travels a lot for his job, so you shouldn't be disturbed at all. Any questions?"

"Rent is due on the fourth of every month, correct?"

"Yes ma'am."

"And where is the closest Italian restaurant?" I asked. "I'm starving."

"Verandah is amazing, I actually just had lunch there yesterday." She replied.

"Thanks. I'll check out the pool and the fitness center a little later, right now I just want to hang out and unpack."

"It's no problem, I'll leave you to it. Here's your key to the apartment, and your key to your mailbox. And this little thing right here is a pass to the front doors, which stay locked at all times. If you lose that, it's a $20 replacement fee. Just swipe it across the little strip, and the light should flash green."

"Thanks, I got it."

Alisha flashed a smile and reminded me to call her if any problems came up.

I placed my new set of keys on the counter top in the kitchen and sighed at the boxes that I would have to unpack. I started at the boxes on top of the pile, the boxes labeled 'pots and pans' and 'books' were first. I stashed the kitchen ware in the cabinets and stacked the books in the corner where I would put a desk. I moved the TV, set the bar stools up next to the island in the kitchen, and hung up all my clothes. The records I left in the boxes until I could go out and buy a bookshelf to put them in, along with the DVDs and books.**  
**

My stomach growled loudly, pulling me out of the distraction that was unpacking. I swiftly swiped my keys from the counter and stepped out into the hallway only to come face-to-chest with a man in a black, leather jacket and baseball cap pulled over his forehead.

"I'm so sorry!" I gasped. He mumbled something incoherent and disappeared behind the door into the apartment next to mine. "Rude."

The strip was vibrant. I had never been so mesmerized in my entire life. There were so many lights, so many people, it was beautiful. I found Verandah, but it was a fourty-five minute wait, and the rude hostess badgered me for not making reservations. I spotted a McDonald's and settled on it. I wasn't in the mood to wait for over-priced, frozen Italian food, anyways.

When I got back to the apartment, James called, and I reassured him that I was fine, and would probably start shopping for more furniture tomorrow. After all, I was missing a couch, a mattress, desk, and entertainment center. It was too late to go out to the store to get anything. Tonight I would definitely be sleeping on the floor. I pulled out two blankets from a cardboard box. One I folded up and used as a pillow, the other I draped over myself. It was too quiet in the apartment. I was used to falling asleep with the sounds of my parents TV in the next room. All I could hear was police sirens every now and again.

I pulled out my phone and dialed James back on Skype.

_"Hey, you okay?"_ I fought back the urge to cry.

"Can you you just talk to me until I fall asleep?" I asked and set the phone up against one of the boxes. "It's too quiet here."

_"What do you want me to talk about?"_ He asked.

"Anything, tell me a story." James was a writer. He had always liked writing. I would always be the one to proofread his papers and school work. He entered a state-wide contest once to win a publishing deal, but he was beat by this sixty-eight year old English teacher from Gatlinburg. I always thought he was talented, though.

He smiled at me, the glare from the computer screen lighting up his face. _"You'll love this one. Once upon a time there was an egg named Oscar. He woke up one morning, got out of bed, scampered across the floor, opened his door, looked up at the beautiful sun and said, "Ahhh, what a glorious day for a walk". __So Oscar walked down the street to the corner, turned left, and walked several more blocks. While Oscar was walking, out in front of him strolled a little spotted kitten. The kitten was white wit-"_

* * *

**She fell asleep, so I obviously ended there. I hate writing in first person.**

**Maybe that's why I'm so self-conscious about this story.**

**No playlist for this one.**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged.**


	4. Games

**Author's Note:**

**A big huge thank you to Damnitambrose, nattiebroskette, UntilNeverDawns, Sinistergateslegend, undertaker6575, and dreamin'BIG for reviewing and sharing your feedback with me. I really appreciate it, and I hope that you like this short little update.**

**I love you guys.**

* * *

_"How long have you been holed up in that apartment?" _James asked over the phone as I munched on a piece of toast.

I had tried a dozen times to convince him that I was actually doing things in Vegas, but the only thing that I had really accomplished was going to the grocery store and buying a loaf of bread, a tub of butter, jar of grape jelly, and a box of cereal. Even that didn't take too much effort, because there was a Whole Foods within walking distance.

It had been a month since I had moved in. A month of television show marathons; I had been through all of LOST, Breaking Bad, and The Office. A month of eating almost nothing but chicken salad sandwiches, and I'm talking about the chicken you get out of a can mixed with mayonnaise. A month of avoiding actually going outside because it was so hot. A month of fucking up my sleep schedule. A month of taking a shower every four days and not shaving my legs.

The only human interaction I had was the cashier at whatever store I had to go to to get more canned chicken or ice cream.

_"You're depressed."_ James said.

"I'm not depressed." I replied, with a mouthful of chocolate frosting that I was eating right out of the container.

_"You move all the way across the country to 'start over', yet you just sit in your fancy-schmancy apartment and be depressed. Tell me, have you started on Grey's Anatomy yet?" _

"No." I sat down the remote, not clicking on my seventh straight episode of Grey's.

_"You live in _Vegas_ of all places. You should be out there enjoying the strip, gambling all your money away, and getting wasted. Who knows maybe someone will roofie your drink and you'll wake up with a tiger in your bathroom."_

"You're not funny." He was right though. I really needed to get out there. I sighed loudly into the phone. "Fine. I'll go shopping or something."

_"There you go!"_ James interrupted. _"Go spend some money. That always makes everyone feel better." _I mentally cursed him. I felt fine._ "And while you're doing that, can you add some color into your wardrobe? A girl shouldn't wear just three colors."_

"Okay, RuPaul, calm down." I stood up, setting my jar of frosting on the kitchen counter and walked back into my bedroom. When I opened my closet I looked at the clothes inside. There was a lot of black, a lot of grey, and some red and browns, and blue if you count jeans. I pulled out a black crop top and a pair of jeans.

_"I'm just saying."_

"Whatever, I'm going to go _shopping. _I'll text you or something."

_"Please do."_ He replied. _"Oh and invest in some high he-"_

I pressed the red 'end' button and threw my phone on the bed. I had no interest in shopping. I had no interest in doing anything but sitting on my couch and getting fat and crying over an extremely unrealistic show about doctors.

When I looked at myself in the mirror, saying I was unhappy with the reflection was the understatement of the year. _A fitness room is included in my rent, I should probably start to take advantage of that, _I thought to myself as I poked at my sides.

The strip was always busy, which was why I tried to stay away from it for the most part. Before my parents- before they passed away, I liked huge groups of people. I enjoyed being the life of the party and the center of attention. Now I wanted to avoid everyone at all costs. I literally had to Google where the best shops were in Vegas, because obviously I wouldn't know. I was trying to go all-out here and not revert to just going to Walmart.

First, I walked through Bally's. My stomach turned thinking about fine jewelry and designer handbags. The jewelry that I wore came from the clearance racks at J.C Penny, and they almost always turned your skin green if you wore it for too long. Second, I hit up Excalibur. Once inside, however, I immediately regretted my decision as there were live plays about medieval times and King Authur's Court. I avoided Crystal's because the word 'Fendi' was plastered on the front of the building. I picked up a couple dressed at the Cosmopolitan, but I had to make sure that they were on the 70% off rack, because everything there was way too overpriced.

After I left there I gave up and ended up driving to the nearest Khol's.

I found a few pairs of shorts that I liked, a couple skirts, and over loaded myself with shirts and blouses. They were having a sweater sale to get ready for summer, but what was the difference in Vegas? I found a cute pair of sandals like the ones Alisha was wearing, a cute pair of black flats, and a pair of nude heels to go with my dresses, _if_ I ever decided to wear them.

That was enough for one day. It was already getting late.

Before heading home, I swung by Panda Express and picked up a smorgasbord of Chinese Food- a little treat to myself for accomplishing something today, and a break from the chicken salad sandwiches.

As I stepped out of the elevator on my floor, I heard a door slam. "Oh, rude neighbor must be back in town." I mumbled under my breath and unlocked my door. I dropped the clothes bags at the entrance and kicked them to the side, hurriedly making my way back to the couch with my take out to resume my Grey's marathon.

* * *

I woke up a few hours later. The screen was asking me if I wanted to continue or not. I yawned and declined, shutting the TV off, making my way back to my bedroom. The clothes were still in their bags on the floor, Chinese food containers littered my living room table, and it was almost two o'clock in the morning. I hated this sleeping schedule. I used to be that girl that was asleep by 9:00 p.m and up by 7:00.

My head hit the pillow and I reached over to shut the light off. I closed my eyes and thought of nothingness.

I was rudely pulled from my thoughts when a loud banging began on the other side of my bedroom wall.

I turned the light back on and listened for a moment.

It sounded like someone was hitting the wall with a hammer, hitting it with so much force that I could feel it. I was confused at first, but only for a half second before I heard a chorus of _"Oh my God" _and _"Fuck" _and _"Fuck me harder, Dean". _My stomach knotted. I felt like I was going to be sick.

It was almost two in the morning, I was exhausted.

_"Harder! HARDER! **FUCK!**" _

I balled my fist and hit the wall a couple times, yelling at the couple in the next room to kindly _shut the fuck up._

They didn't.

Thirty minutes passed by and they were still going at it.

An hour.

Two hours.

I was moving from disgusted to impressed, though I was a little sick of hearing this girl beg for him to suck on her titties. And it was laughable every time she asked for a spanking because she was a 'naughty girl'.

Suddenly with a loud _"Fuuuuuck!" _from both 'Dean' and whatever his partner's name was, the ruckus fell quiet.

I looked at the time. It was fifteen minutes to five, but I was wide awake now. The lovers remained quiet, I was sure by now that they were cuddling up next to each other, spooning, and basking in each other's nakedness. I gagged.

"Don't you for one second think that you're going to sleep that easily, _Dean_." I sneered as I pulled out my phone and plugged it into my stereo. My thumb slid up the screen, searching for a good song to put on. I stopped at my dad's most hated song of all time, but I loved it for some reason, 'Stayin' Alive' by Bee Gees. I turned all the speakers towards the wall for added effect, and turned the volume up as far as it could go. I grabbed a bottle of lotion from the dresser to use as a michrophone and fell into some form of dance with the music.

I cleared my throat and with my best Barry Gibb voice, I began singing the first verse.

Ignoring the loud knocks that came from the bedroom opposite mine, I continued into the chorus. _"AH AH AH AH stayin' alive, stayin' alive. AH AH AH AH stayin' aliiiiiiiivvvveeeeee!" _I moved into the living room, continuing my personal rock concert at five o'clock in the morning.

The knocks moved from my bedroom wall to my front door. I peaked out the peephole and saw the man whom I had bumped into the first day that I had moved in. Only this time, he wasn't covered up with a baseball cap and hulking, leather jacket. He actually was a very attractive man, if you got past the receding hairline and the fact that he didn't have a top lip. And also the fact that I had just listened to him bang some chick for the past two hours.

I opened my door. He was standing there, leaning up against the frame in a white t-shirt and boxers. Sure, maybe he was mad that my music was a little loud, but he was probably more irritated at the fact that he had to actually put clothes on. But of course, I didn't know this man. I shouldn't be judging him so harshly.

"Can I help you?" I asked over the music that was still blaring in the background.

"Yeah, can you chill out in here? We're trying to sleep."

"Oh, _you're_ trying to sleep. Right. Why should I care? Because for the past two hours _I've_ been trying to sleep, and you didn't really seem to take me into consideration when you were spanking your _'naughty girl'_."

He smirked, shifted his head, and cracked his neck. "I'm not gonna apologize to you."

"Well then," I said as I shimmied backwards. "Neither am I."

I slammed the door in his face, and shrugged, dancing my way back to my bedroom. I let the song play out before I shut off my stereo and crawled back in bed. I heard a loud _"thank you"_ from the other side of the wall and rolled my eyes.

_Jackass._

* * *

**I kind of really love Callie. What about you guys?**

**1\. Pyro - Kings Of Leon**

**2\. Stayin' Alive - Bee Gees**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged :)**


	5. So Rude

**Author's Note:**

**It's four o'clock in the afternoon and I just woke up. It's raining, I have the windows open, and it's oh, so peaceful. I'd like to thank dreamin'BIG, Sinistergateslegend, Mandamirra10, nattiebroskette, Ashes2Dust18, UntilNeverDawns, and Damnitambrose for being awesome and showing this story some love. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it. And also to the people who have decided to 'favorite' and 'follow' this story; the silent readers. I love you guys too. :)**

**On a side note- Dean is gone a lot for work. I mean, he's stated in several interviews that he is only really home for a few days out of each month. Right now, is one of those few days. The chapters may be days, weeks, or even months apart. I will clearly indicate that, but I just wanted you guys to know that Dean might not be in every chapter. I know you signed up to read this story because Dean's name is on it, and he will be a major character. But the beginning of this story is about Callie, and then Dean, and then even James will play a huge part in this. I don't want to disappoint anyone, so I thought I would get that out of the way now.**

* * *

You're supposed to only wear your wedding dress once. My mother didn't really believe that theory. In fact, one year my mom pulled her's out of the closet and wore it for Halloween. Our entire family went as zombies; my dad in his tux, my mom in her wedding dress, and I was three years old, wearing a velvet red dress that my mom bought for me to take pictures with Santa in. There's a picture of all of us somewhere; green-ish gray facepaint and all.

Over the years she would put it on, just to make sure that it still fit. I would always sit on the edge of her bed and marvel at how she still had the body of her twenty year old self. She looked like a princess, always. And she promised me that one day I would wear that same dress to my wedding.

_"I never get tired of seeing her in that thing." My dad whispered to me as my mom came down the stairs. I had never seen her look so beautiful. _

_James was standing next to me; dressed up in a suit he borrowed from his brother. And my dad had his original tux re-fitted so that his beer gut was properly covered. The dress I was wearing was nothing special. I found it at J.C Penney on clearance for five dollars. They were getting rid of all the prom dresses, I took advantage. It was an off-white, fluffy little dress that I paired with flats that I borrowed from my mother. James told me upon arriving, that he was glad I wasn't wearing black for once. _

_I couldn't wear black to my parent's vow renewing ceremony._

_The four of us stood in the living room; the table had been removed to make standing room. Father Lucas stood in the middle, holding a bible between his hands. _

_"I have been called here today for this rather nontraditional renewal of vows between Jack and Jennifer Jordan. I would like to thank you for inviting me here to be apart of this beautiful celebration. I would also like to thank Callie and James, as well, for being here to witness this loving exchange. Callie, I know your parents love you with all their hearts, and James... you too, I guess." _

_My parents laughed, thought there were tears in their eyes. _

_"We love you, James." My mother said quietly._

_"It's been twenty years, though it doesn't feel that way. It seems as if it was just yesterday I was standing in the same spot, in the hall of the Lord, watching you two exchange your vows for the first time. You were both two kids, still are deep down, but you were crazy about each other, which you also still are. Jack, Jenny, you've been married for twenty years. You now know that love is more than a feeling. It's not always a field of daisies. It's a long, hard and winding road that the two of you have traveled down together, and it's brought you both here in the living room of your beautiful home; with your beautiful daughter and James beside you. The vows you renew together will carry you both through another twenty years, and another twenty years after that til death do you part." _

_Father Lucas looked at my father, prompting him to start._

_My dad seemed nervous. A few beads of sweat dampened his forehead, and his breathing was unsteady. "Jenny, I uh- I remember telling you once that I want us to be that couple that stays together forever. When everyone thought this life would be too much for two kids like us to handle, we proved them wrong. I knew it from the moment I first saw you in that highway-side diner in Abilene that you were my soul mate. And what'ya know you show up at my college. What am I doing!? I've been married to a stalker for twenty years!" My mom laughed and wiped the tears from her eyes. "You're my best friend, Jennifer. You are the reason I wake up every morning and smile because you're right there beside me. When I look at you I see the reflection of God's heart; kind, loving, beautiful. You loved me when I didn't think it was possible for anyone to love me. You accepted me, and I love you. I love you more than I can bear. Loving you is like this solid weight on my shoulders that will only make me stronger, and eventually invincible. I am honored to carry the love I carry for you, and I'll carry it for the rest of my life."_

_My mom was really crying now. "You wrote all new vows for me?" She asked my dad._

_"The last vows I stole partially from a Hallmark card. We've been married twenty years, I didn't think that was going to fly this time."_

_She laughed. "Well, I didn't really think of anything new. Damn you, Jackson. You're always one-upping me." She wiped tears from her cheeks and took a deep breath. "Fate is a funny thing, you know? I never thought I would see you again after you left the diner, but there you were sitting two rows behind me in Bio. That never happens. Our life is a fairy tale. People laughed at us. People said we wouldn't make it, and we did. I want to be with you for the rest of my life. To have and to hold, in sickness and in health. You are my everything. My rock. My solace. I love you. I love everything about you, not only for what you are, but for who I am as your wife. You have made me a better person. I love you past my mind and beyond my heart. I love you from my soul, a place where only you, Callie, and God dwell."_

_"That was beautiful, mom." I whispered to her. _

_"Now, if you would take each other's hands. Do you, Jackson Dale Jordan, take Jennifer Leigh Jordan to be your wife? Do you promise to love, honor, cherish and protect her, forsaking all others and holding only to her forevermore?"_

_"I do."_

_Do you, Jennifer Lee Jordan, take Jackson Dale Jordan to be your husband? Do you promise to love, honor, cherish and protect him, forsaking all others and holding only to him forevermore?"_

_"I do."_

_"Callie Elizabeth, the rings, please." Father Lucas extended his hands in which I placed my parent's brand new wedding rings. They had gotten their original rings banded with new rings to symbolize another chapter in their lives. __"I now pronounce you man and wife, again, may your next twenty years be blessed."_

_They kissed and James clapped obnoxiously loudly. I stomped on his foot. _

_"Now it's time for a celebration!" My dad yelled. __"I say we all go to Applebee's!"_

I stared at the giant, white box that sat on the top shelf of my closet. I had just gotten finished hanging up all my new clothes when the box caught my eye. Just as I reached for the box, a knock came from the front door. I came back down on from my tippy-toes and sighed.

"Just a minute!" I yelled.

It could only be one of two people; Alisha or my very rude, and extremely unlikable neighbor, Dean.

I peeped through the door to reveal the latter. Dean stood there, hair disheveled, lay grin plastered on his face, in a grey t-shirt and jeans. I groaned loud enough for him to hear me.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"I came to ask if you had any milk. I'm all out."

"So go to the store and get a gallon."

"I don't really feel like it." He said, brushing past me and coming into my house without permission. I stood there, mouth wide, stunned at how rude this man could be.

"Excuse you." I gasped.

"Yes?"

"Get out of my house!"

"You're not much on cleaning, are you?" He asked as he surveyed the Chinese Food boxes that were strewn about and the empty chocolate frosting containers. He picked up one of the boxes and pulled out a cold piece of broccoli, popping it into his mouth.

I'm sure the utter look of disgust on my face was the reason he was smirking again.

"Look, I don't have any milk. But your welcome to the butter, bread, and jam in the fridge if it will make you leave." I crossed me arms across my chest and huffed.

"Nah, it's okay. I came over here because I wanted to give you these." He dropped a small box in my hands. I flipped it over to reveal a cheap pair of headphones. "You know, for the next time I have _company_. Don't want you getting your _virgin_ panties in a twist over here again, darlin'."

"You're hilarious." I said flatly.

He backed out of the door, smiling. "I know, I really am."

I threw his headphones back at him and slammed the door in his face.

_"What happened to 'love thy neighbor as thy love themselves' or however the fuck it goes?" _He yelled through the door.

"It doesn't apply if your neighbor is a total dick!"

_"I'm flattered!" _I heard him say before slamming his door shut.

I stood there for a moment processing what had just happened. He was absolutely appalling. I mean, it literally too my breath away at how big of a jerk he really was. If he thought this was some cute game, he wasn't going to like the ending.

Because I like games.

Especially games that I know I'll win.

* * *

**The gears are turning in Callie's mind now, I wonder what she's thinking.**

**Score:**

**Callie - 1 / ****Dean - 1**

**1\. I Love You Always Forever - Donna Lewis**

**2\. Kiss With A Fist - Florence + The Machine**

**Reviews are encouraged and accepted!**


	6. Checkmate

**Author's Note:**

**It's 5:00 a.m and I'm updating for you guys. DEDICATION. No, I've been on tumblr most of the time, which is why this update went from almost being published at 8:00 p.m yesterday to now. I apologize for that. I'm a procrastinator. What can I say?**

**Hugs to the reviewers: nattiebroskette, UntilNeverDawns, dreamin'BIG, Mandamirra10, quidditchandsonicscrewdrivers, Damnitambrose, Sinistergateslegend, and Shield 316. *throws confettit***

**Enjoy, my loves.**

* * *

"He's utterly repulsive."

_"I don't know, Cal. He sounds kind of hot."_

"James!" I gasped into the phone. "This isn't the time to be gay."

He laughed. _"Noted."_

It had been nearly a month since I had seen or heard anything from my neighbor. Though, he did leave me a note in my mailbox right before I assume he went out of town; _"Don't worry, kitten. I'll be back before you know it." _He even drew a little winky face at the end for added effect.

_"_He called me Kitten, James. _Kitten_!"

_"I think that's cute."  
_

"I hate this guy." I replied dully.

_"You mean you secretly want to bang him?"_

I rolled my eyes. "No."

Things in Vegas had been a lot better for me, considering. I had been on the hunt for a job. James had been pressuring me to really get out there. Though, I'd never admit that it was only because I had ran out of TV shows to watch on Netflix. I still hadn't heard back from any of the restaurants that I applied at, sadly. Most of my days were filled with calling different places and asking if they were hiring. If they were, I'd have to do the unthinkable and actually go outside for once, and fill out an application.

I had been keeping in contact with Alisha regularly, after she showed up unexpectedly to talk to me about a noise complaint that she had received. She wouldn't disclose which neighbor it was that filed the complaint, but I had a pretty good idea. I didn't tell her about the trouble I was having with Dean. I didn't want her to think that I was unhappy with the apartment, because I wasn't. I was unhappy with tenant next door.

_"So tell me about Alisha. She's your new best friend? You trying to get rid of me already?"_

"I wish getting rid of you was that easy. I really do." I replied as I skimmed craigslist for anymore job offerings that I hadn't already applied at. "But no, she's nice. She understands that moving to a new place is scary, she moved here from Alaska. So she's a small town girl like me. We have a lot in common, actually. I'm going to dinner with her tonight."

_"Oh yeah?"_

"Yeah, we're going to some bar downtown."

_"That should be fun. What are you going to wear?"_

I looked in my closet. It had been filled with color since my last shopping trip. I frequently hit up Khol's and a few thrift stores in the area to keep myself updated. Alisha was supposed to be coming over to help me find something to wear, _"I'm not letting you wear a plain t-shirt. No t-shirts allowed." _She had chided me over the phone earlier. I was surprised at how excited she was to actually be hanging out with me.

"I don't know. I was thinking about a pair of jeans, this black top that I got yesterday- it like, has buttons down the front, but it's not a button up. And the straps go across the chest. It's really cute. And then a black cardigan in case it's chilly." I could hear James' discontent on the other side of the phone. "Whatever, Alisha is going to come help me later."

_"Hopefully she has more fashion sense than you." _He said. _"I gotta go back to work. Text me later. Send me a picture or something."_

I threw the phone down and fell on the bed backwards. I wasn't good at this kind of stuff. I never had been. I made friends in high school because I was smart, and everyone wanted to be friends with the smart girl because she'd do your homework for you and make you easy-to-read flashcards for the upcoming Physics exam. Also because there wasn't really a lot of kids in my town, we were all just kind of stuck up each other's asses. I went to Gatlinburg Community College, the people there aren't even worth mentioning. I kept my head down, I studied hard, and I left there with a Bachelor's in Business.

And I'm using that degree very wisely right now as I wallow in self pity.

But wasn't I allowed to be sad?

I could hear my dad's voice in the back of my head saying 'no'. Telling me that I had to get up and put my big girl pants on, because I am twenty-two years old and I should have accomplished the world by now. _"Get up, Cal. Just because something sad happens doesn't mean that you put your entire life on hold." _He told me that when my first boyfriend ever, Jared, broke up with me. He came into my room one night after I refused to come eat dinner; there were blankets hanging over the windows to keep the sunlight from coming in, the lights were off, and Britney Spears' 'From The Bottom Of My Broken Heart' was playing on repeat. I was sixteen years old, what'd he expect?

Alisha showed up a few hours later. I was alphabetizing my DVD's to keep myself occupied while I waited for her. She welcomed me with a warm hug, one that she had to bend down in to because she was already a good five inches taller than me. Her heels didn't help.

"Let me see that closet!" She squealed with excitement as she clapped her hands together.

"I already have something picked o-" She sighed. "Just give it a chance, okay? You might actually like it."

She followed me to the bedroom and sat at the end of my bed as I changed in the bathroom. She thumbed through one of my picture albums of Tennessee as she asked me questions about my home life. We still hadn't really discussed that _one topic_, but she did know about it at least. Sometimes I felt like maybe that was the only reason she was being so nice to me; pity.

I stepped from behind the bathroom door cautiously.

"I like it!" She beamed.

"Really?"

"Yeah, it's cute. It suits you. Not too far from your comfort zone, but far enough. There's only one problem; _those_ have to go." She pointed to my flats.

"What?!" I whined. "No flats?"

Alisha was already digging through my the shoe boxes at the base of my closet. "Yes! These will work!" I heard her muffled voice. She emerged with a pair of black heels that I had bought at Cosmopolitan a few weeks ago. They had studded diamonds on the heels. "Girl, you've got to let me borrow these one day."

I snatched the shoes away from her and huffed, slipping them over my feet before looking at myself in the mirror. They did look better, but I wasn't about to admit that to Miss Fashion Police.

"Now, you need some make up."

"No."

"Yes."

"No, Lish. I hate make up."

"Callie, it's just one night. Dress to impress. You never know who you'll meet out there. Maybe you'll meet your soul mate." She whined as she pulled out her mascara, lip stick, and eye shadow.

I groaned and plopped myself down on the toilet, letting her have her way.

When she was finished she took a good look at me and smiled. "Go look at yourself."

I hadn't worn make up since Homecoming my junior year of high school.

"I hate it." That was a lie. I actually really liked it. My lips were bright red, my eyebrows were penciled in, and I had this smokey effect going on.

"You love it. Come on, let's go."

When we got to the bar it was way too crowded for my taste. If I had known we were going to be meeting a few of Alisha's friends, I probably wouldn't have come, I didn't like feeling like the third wheel. Or in this case the fifth wheel. She introduced me to each of them, and they all seemed nice, until they immersed themselves into their own conversations and I was left with myself and a watered down Jack and Coke.

I indicated that I was going to go grab another drink, but no one was really paying any attention.

"Another Jack and Coke, please." I yelled over the music.

I waited for the bartender to make my drink, and tried to avoid the couple next to me who were practically devouring each other's faces.

"Are you even old enough to be in here?" I heard from behind me. I immediately froze.

When I turned around, I, for the second time, came face-to-chest with none other than my annoying neighbor, Dean. The unexpected closeness made my breath hitch, but I remembered that there was barely any room to stand, and this was the only open spot at the bare where there wasn't a couple playing tonsil hockey. He towered over me, making me feel extremely intimidated. He was tall, but standing mere centimeters apart, he was like a skyscraper.

"Why are you here?" I groaned, turning my back towards him. I could feel our bodies touching slightly, I shivered.

"I live here too, ya know?"

"Hardly. You're in town, what? Once a month?"

"So you noticed?" I could practically see that evil smirk in my mind. _Bastard. _"Did you get my note?"

"Yeah, please don't leave any more of those. It's harassment."

He scoffed. "What'ya drinkin'?"

"None of your business." The bartender sat the drink down on the bar in front of me. I went to hand him my card, but Dean swatted my hand away and told the man to put it on his tab.

"Stop." I said as I turned back around. I could smell his cologne. It was extremely enticing.

"Stop what?"

"Being annoying."

"Nah, pissing you off is fun."

I brushed past him and made my way back to the group. However, a few moments after I sat down, there was Dean sitting down in the chair across from me. If looks could kill, I would've murdered this man ten times already.

"Callie!" Alisha yelled over the music. "Have you met Dean? He's the neighbor I was telling you about!"

_Oh yeah, we've met alright. _"No, we haven't met yet!" I said with a fake smile. "I'm Callie. It's so great to meet you!"

He was smirking again. It took everything in me not to slap that chubby, smug face of his. He stuck a hand out to me and I reluctantly took it. "Nice to meet you too, _Callie._"

A waitress sauntered over to our table with a tray of food on her shoulder. As she walked around me, I discreetly stuck my foot out and tripped her up, sending two baskets of hot wings into Dean's lap. She caught herself before the rest of the food fell, and apologized profusely, saying that she must've caught the leg of my chair.

"Oh my gosh!" I gasped. "Here let me help you!"

As I reached over the table to place a few napkins in my neighbor's lap, I knocked over his drink causing an even bigger mess.

I looked up at him, faking shock, but he just smiled. He nodded his head and smiled, taking in a deep breath.

Alisha rushed over to help him but he stood up calmly and made his way to the bathroom. She looked at me with a 'why did you just do that' look, but I shrugged my shoulders and continued sipping on my drink.

After a while, Dean never returned. I mentally gave myself a pat on the back.

"Hey Lish!" I called. "I think I'm going to head home."

She nodded at me and hugged me goodbye.

I made my way through the crowd and out into the warm Nevada air. I greeted it kindly, taking in a deep breath as soon as I stepped out of the bar. The fresh air was nice. There wasn't a pungent smell of sweaty bodies mixed with strong cologne. When I opened my eyes, I saw someone standing up against the building out of the corner of my eye.

_You've got to be kidding me._

He had his eyes on me the whole time. I took another deep breath and hitched the strap of my bag over my shoulder. My plan was to walk right past him and just get to my car.

However, I should've known that wasn't going to happen.

"_Callie_." He said so nonchalantly, drawing my name out in a taunting way. "You've got balls. You know, a lot of people tend to stay away from me, they don't actively go and piss me off."

"But it's so much _fun_." I mocked him.

He laughed. "Tread lightly, dear."

"You don't scare me."

For once he was at a loss for words. I smiled at him and continued down the street. I could feel the hole his stare was burning in my back as I walked away, but I ignored it and slid into my car. I looked back briefly, but he was gone.

* * *

**Score:**

**Callie - 2 / Dean - 1**

**Someone is getting under someone's skin, I'd say...**

**1\. Good Vibrations - The Beach Boys**

**2\. Who Knows Who Cares - Local Natives**

**3\. Tighten Up - The Black Keys**

**Reviews are appreciated and accepted! :***


	7. Pick Your Battles

**Author's Note:**

**Hey, have you noticed a lot of grammatical errors? Me too. I'm sorry about that. I'm currently working on a old Dell that's running Windows Vista at the moment. This computer is so old and mainly every button sticks. I'm missing my ESC button and my Caps button. The enter key doesn't work unless I slam down on it. It's just a huge mess.**

****I want to send out a big, huge thank you to Damnitambrose and Mandamirra10 for you kind messages****

**Also, I gotta send love to all you other guys: Sinistergateslegend, dreamin'BIG, UntilNeverDawns, xSamiliciousx, 00redsvt, and ThatGirl54. Have I told you guys how much I appreciate you? Well, I do. I appreciate you so much. Even all you silent readers out there who are favoriting and following this story, I see y'all. You guys are honestly the best. And you make my day every day when I wake up and see another email. :)**

**Friendly reminder that all of you guys can follow me on tumblr, if you have one, that is. And you can talk to me whenever you want. About anything. I mean, obviously I'm doing nothing else if I'm updating this thing everyday.**

* * *

It was April.

I had been living in this apartment for two months and I still hadn't gone to the pool.

The weather had been in the ninety's all week, and today it had cooled down to a high of seventy-six. It was the perfect day for reading a book and _"working on my tan"_, which Alisha said was vital. I couldn't be the color of loose leaf paper and live in Vegas, apparently.

God forbid.

I lathered myself up with tanning lotion, pledging to do it the right way, and not a spray-on tan like Alisha's was. She should really be thankful that I was stepping this far out of my comfort zone. I really hated the idea of tanning. If I end up with skin cancer from this, I'm going to blame it all on her. I grabbed a book off the shelf and stepped out into the hallway, thankfully there was no Dean. No sarcastic remarks, devilish smirks, and mind games. After last night, I was glad to be rid of him for another month.

Surprisingly, earlier Alisha texted me saying that she had fun last night, and that her friends liked me, and wanted to know if I would like to go out with them again. Basically she was pressuring me into it, because she felt like it would be good for me. When I called James last night, after filling him in on all the childish shenanigans I pulled, he felt like it would be a good idea for me to implement myself in the group as well. Especially if Dean was apart of that group.

Personally, that was the reason I would want to stay _away_.

I couldn't tell if I hated Dean or if I actually enjoyed when he was around. If I was being completely honest with myself, and I'd never admit this to anyone, ever, but this back-and-forth banter was the most fun I have had since _that day._ Was last night too much, though? I tripped a waitress and caused her to spill two whole baskets of hot wings right in his lap, followed by a cold beer.

My lips formed into a tight line as I suppressed a smile.

_Nah, that wasn't too much._

It felt good to lay in the sun. It was almost noon, the kids were still in school, and all that I could hear was the breeze flirting with the palm trees. It was such a beautiful day. I relished in it, knowing James was almost 2,000 miles away suffering in the cold April showers that hit Tennessee every year. I sent him a picture of the pool, my toes were sticking out in the bottom of it, with the caption _"It's a beautiful day in Vegas! What are you doing with your day?"_

He replied with the poop emoji.

I closed my eyes for a moment, letting the Vitamin D settle into my pores. I had my ear buds in, the sounds of Passion Pit went perfectly with the sweet breeze. But suddenly, the sun disappeared. That was impossible, because there wasn't a cloud in sight. I peeked an eye open and quickly shut it, hoping that when I opened them again the person standing in front of me would have magically disappeared.

That wasn't the case though.

His lips were moving, but I couldn't hear him over the music. I pointed to my ears and shrugged, signaling to him that I couldn't hear what he was saying, and that I really didn't care for that matter. He rolled his eyes and turned his back to me, allowing me to scope out his muscular build. He was wearing a pair of black trunks, obviously about to take a dip in the pool.

_He probably saw me down here from his window and decided to continue torturing me,_ I thought to myself. I looked up at the building and could see my room from where I was, which meant that Dean definitely would have been able to see me from up there. _That little shit._

Just as I turned my head back to Dean, I saw that he was mid-air, cannonball position, and I was suddenly drenched with cold, chlorinated water.

I sat there for a minute, jaw dropped, stunned.

"What is wrong with you!?" I yelled as I yanked my earphones from my ears. Everything was soaked. My towel, my book, my cover-up. Everything.

He was laughing hysterically and paused only for a minute to say, "payback's a bitch."

I stood at the edge of the pool. "Don't you have anything better to do? Don't you have any friends? Are you so lonely that you have to make a poor girl's life a living hell every chance you ge-"

Before I could finish my rant Dean had jumped up, grabbed my arm, and yanked me down into the pool.

I scratched and clawed my way to the surface, coughing and sputtering. "You're a piece of shit."

He laughed again and slicked his dripping hair back on his head. I paused for a moment, letting the waves settle, just looking at him. He held my stare for a moment before he winked.

"Ew." I groaned, sending a splash his way.

"Aw, ya breakin' my heart here, sweetheart!" He replied as I waded over to the pool steps.

"You're a creepy, old man, and I don't like you." I walked over to my wet towel and wrapped it around my petite frame, cursing under my breath the whole time. "You ruin everything."

He held a hand over his heart as if I had actually hurt his feelings. I knew better. Jackasses like him don't have any feelings. "Hey, Callie, wait." He used to side of the pool to lift himself out and shook the water from him like a dog.

My arms were across my chest and I stood there impatiently. "What?"

"Don't leave, come on! You came down here to tan, or whatever-"

"And you came down here just to fuck up my day."

"Alright, I did happen to look out of my window and see you down here." He confessed. "But, look, swimming's no fun alone."

Dean placed his rough hands on either side of my arms, I felt a blush creep up my neck, but only for a moment before he picked me up slightly, and dropped me in the pool a second time; towel and all right in the water. When I came to the surface, Dean was already walking towards the back entrance of the building as he laughed.

I quickly pulled myself from the pool and rung out my towel, slipping on my flip flops which squeaked with each step I took and made my way back inside. I noticed that Dean was standing at the vending machine by the elevator. He had a bag of Sun Chips in his hand and was making another selection.

"Fuck you." I said, swatting the bag of chips out of his hand. I stomped on them with my foot. "Fuck your Sun Chips, too."

Dean stifled laughter, but I meant business.

I moved around him and pressed the button on the door to the elevator. When I turned around, I watched Dean stand there smirking as the elevator doors came to a close. I ran a hand through my hair and sighed as I leaned up against the wall.

These games were getting old real fast.

Can't he just go out of town again and do whatever, wherever?

I got my stubbornness from my dad, and as much as I wanted to keep playing these little games, I know he would be scolding me right now and telling me that I was a grown ass woman and needed to act that way. I didn't want to surrender that easily, but I was coming to realize that maybe Dean was only doing these things to get a reaction out of me; like a typical bully.

Maybe I should just ignore him. Ignore all the comments and the smirks. Swallow my pride and move past all of this bullshit.

When I got up to my apartment I stripped out of my bikini and threw it in the washer, along with my towel and cover-up. Before I stepped in the shower, my phone vibrated on the counter.

**Alisha Davis: **_"Hey, feel like partying two nights in a row? Drinks on me!"_

The keywords in that text were "drinks on me". I couldn't refuse. Regardless of how much I hated people, and hated crowds, and hated being grinded on by random, sweaty men as I try to walk through a club, I loved free booze. And right now, I could really use a good party to take my mind off of my dumb, stupidly attractive, jerk neighbor.

**Alisha Davis:** _"I'll pick you up at 8:00 then. It's dress to impress, so no jeans. Dresses only!"_

At this point, I really didn't care. And if Dean was going to be there, which I'm sure he had already gotten the invite, I knew exactly what I was going to wear.

* * *

**Current Score:**

**Callie - 2 / Dean: 3**

**Oh this party is going to be fun.**

**1\. Swimming In The Flood - Passion Pit**

**2\. Knife - Grizzly Bear**

**3\. Left Hands Free - alt-J**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	8. Look After You

**Author's Note:**

**So I'm a little curious as to how you guys picture Callie. You should leave me a description in your next review. That'd be cool, seeing as I've barely described her other than mentioning her style and little pudgy tummy. I'd also like to know how you picture Alisha and James, as well.**

**I can't believe we are already on the eighth chapter. I'm really trying to write as quickly as possible, because I have to go back to work on Saturday. And after that the updates will definitely slow down a little bit. **

**I'd like to thank nattiebroskette, Sinistergateslegend, Damnitambrose, jessfaye, the lovely Guest, ThatGirl54, Mandamirra10, xSamiliciousx, dreamin'BIG, 00redsvt, and turningthepaige for being amazing and awesome and perfect and great. And I just love all of you.**

**Anyways, enjoy! You can find me on Polyvore: MeganSueann is my username. There's a few sets for this story including Callie's outfit for this chapter. You can check it out if you'd like.**

* * *

"Oh my god." Alisha said the moment she stepped through the front door. "Aw! You even did your own make up! I'm so proud of you!"

She was wearing flats today, so hugging her wasn't as awkward this time.

"I pulled a page out of your book. Are you sure it's not too much? I mean, look at the back."

I turned my back to her so that she could see that it was cut out. It clung to my curves, hugging them in a good way. But I felt exposed. I wasn't bringing a cardigan or a sweater, because I knew that I wouldn't need it. I just felt so naked.

"Whew! Mama, you are hot!" She said as she pretended to fan herself. I blushed and took a turn in the mirror. I did look good. "Just don't bed over."

The dress was short. I was a short woman, finding short dresses was hard for me. Most of them were too long, except this one.

"You ready to go?" She asked, checking her watch.

I nodded, stealing one more quick glance in the mirror before following her out.

Apparently Alisha _knew_ the owner of the club. All she had to do was drop his name and all her drinks were free. She told me if I saw anyone famous not to freak out, because famous people frequented this club a lot. I suddenly became a lot more nervous. There was a line of desperate guys and girls dressed up in their best out front, but Alisha and I slipped through easily with the words, _"Alisha Davis and plus one."_

"I'm your plus one?" I asked with disbelief. I could think of a million other people she would have wanted to take with her, but the fact that she chose me made me feel good.

The music was loud. And not the good kind of loud. The music at the bar was great because there was a live band playing, and I had always been a sucker for live music. My dad used to take me to a lot of concerts when I was little. This was 100% club music. Remixes of the hottest songs with too much bass. I could feel it vibrating throughout my entire body.

We made our way past the dance floor and to a group of couches in the back corner of the club. Alisha ordered us drinks quickly. I decided on a Long Island this time, really kick the night off right. Her friends all greeted me warmly. This time they actually included me in their conversation. One of the girls, Madison, a red head with wild, frizzy curls, offered to put in a good word for me at the restaurant she worked at. It was great, I wasn't the fifth wheel anymore, but my eyes couldn't help but stay focused on the door, waiting for the moment that Mr. Ignorance came through.

"Hey, you alright?" Alisha asked.

I snapped back to the group and smiled at her. "Yeah, definitely. I'm having a lot of fun. I just need a refill!"

I stood up and Alisha reached for the hem of my dress that had risen up. I mouthed 'thanks' to her before making my way through the busy club. As I stood at the bar for what seemed like an eternity waiting for my drink, I found myself becoming more and more disappointed.

He wasn't here.

I was sure that Alisha would have invited him. Or at least someone in her group would have. Or maybe they weren't as chummy as I thought they were. Either way, I wanted him to be there and he wasn't.

The bartender handed me my drink and asked me if I was paying by cash or charge. "I'm with Alisha Davis, but hang on." He raised his eyebrows as I slurped the drink down in a matter of seconds. "Could I have another, please?"

My cheeks were beginning to flush. My body heated up, inviting the foreign liquid, letting it soak into my bloodstream. It felt good.

"Hey!" I yelled over the music as he made my drink. "Can I get a double shot of Fireball."

"We don't have Fireball here."

Right, I forgot that was a southern thing.

"Just vodka then. Grey Goose."

Hey, if it's been paid for why not, right?

I slurped down the shot and walked back to the group. They all cheered when I got back. I could feel myself swaying with the music, and overcome with a happiness that I didn't know I had.

I wanted to dance.

"Colin!" I yelled over the music. Alisha's brother was a very attractive guy. He had this west coast look to him that you only ever saw on MTV reality television shows that were filmed on some beach in California. He was probably the only one out of the group that would actually hold a conversation with me. That was probably because he seemed just as interested in being here as I was. "Dance with me!" I whined, pulling at his hand.

He allowed me to lead him to the dance floor, where I attempted to dance, but I was more or less making a fool of myself.

Colin placed his hands on my hips, keeping me controlled and slowing me down. We moved in sync with the rhythm. My heart pounded with each beat of the song. It was exhilarating.

The song faded out, coming to a complete stop, but I was still dancing as everyone around me was cheering the DJ.

"Mind if I?" I heard behind me. Suddenly Colin wasn't dancing behind me anymore.

I turned around and Dean was standing in front of me. His hair was pushed back and curly on the ends, and he hadn't shaven, but he still looked like he belonged in this upscale club.

"Where have you been?!" I blurted out. I obviously meant to say, "w_hy are you here? Leave me alone. Go annoy someone else."_ Or something along those lines.

"Sorry princess, I had a busy day. Are you going to dance with me or not?"

I crossed my arms across my chest. "I'm not obliged to dance with you."

"You're right, you're not. But I can't just leave a beautiful girl in the middle of the dance floor without a partner, now can I?"

He took one of my hands, uncrossed my arms, and spun me around, pulling me into his body and we began swaying back and forth. The tempo had drastically changed, a slower, more sensual beat. Even though there were a hundred more couples on that dance floor, it felt like it was just Dean and I. Like we were doing so much more than just dancing.

His hand traveled from my waist, and his fingertips intricately traced up my arm. I felt cold, but I was burning up. My face was clammy, mouth was dry. Either I needed a drink or I needed to make a beeline for the bathroom. Either way, I _had _to get off of this dance floor. I had to get away from this man.

I turned to face him and placed my hands on his chest. "I- I have to go."

He looked confused for a moment. "Uh, okay?"

"I really don't feel good."

It didn't take long for that confusion to be taken over by concern. I teetered back a little bit, trying to find my footing. The other dancers weren't making it easy as they danced circles around us. It was making me all the more dizzy.

"I need to sit down." I said.

"Come on."

He slouched an arm around my shoulders, leading me off of the dance floor and back to the group. I plopped down on the couch, holding my head between my knees, and took deep breaths. Dean mentioned something about going to get me water, but everything was escalating so quickly that I wasn't sure if it was actually him or if I was making things up in my mind.

"Callie, are you okay?" I heard someone ask me. I tried to nod, but my body felt like liquid.

"Here, drink this." I heard Dean's voice but I couldn't see him anywhere. I couldn't see anything. "Callie, you have to drink this water." I blinked a couple of times, trying to focus on the glass of ice water that was being held in front of me.

I reached up, took the glass in hand, and spilled it on Dean's feet.

I heard an exasperated sigh and I giggled.

"Callie, this isn't the time for games. I'm trying to help you here."

All I wanted to do was laugh. And puke.

"She had a lot to drink. Like four Long Islands." Alisha was there too somewhere. Apparently.

"I'm going to take her home." Dean said.

_No, Lish! Don't let him take me!_

"Are you sure? I can drive her. I had one Manhattan, but that was hours ago."

_Yes, please don't leave me with this creep._

"We're neighbors, Lish. It's fine." He replied. I groaned. "Come on, sweet cheeks. Let's get you home."

I could feel his hand snake around my waist to keep me steady. With each step I took I felt like a giant, balloon man that waved to you from the car dealership parking lots. You know the ones I'm talking about? They're like ten feet tall and there arms are all outstretched. I felt like one of those.

Before we could get in his car, I ducked out of his grip and ran to the vacant side of the building. Dean tried to hold my hair, but I pushed him away, not wanting him to see me empty the contents of my stomach all over the asphalt.

I immediately felt better; still woozy, and definitely embarrassed, but better none the less.

The car ride to the apartment was silent. We were silent in the elevator.

"Here." I said, handing him my keys. I probably wouldn't be able to unlock a door if I tried.

Dean slid the key in the door and swung it open. As soon as I was inside I pulled my heels off, cracking my toes. It felt good to flatten my feet out. His hand was still around my waist, guiding me to the couch.

"What's the last thing you had to eat?" He asked as he shut the door.

_I don't fucking know. Cereal maybe? _"I don't remember."

He disappeared into the kitchen and came out a few moments later with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a glass of water.

"What are you doing?" I asked him.

"You need to eat something. You need something to soak up the alcohol in your stomach." He sat down on the couch beside me and handed me the plate. "You're not going to spill this on me, are you?"

I shook my head and he handed me the water, I finished it in seconds. My mouth had been so dry.

"Thank you." I was being sincere. I really was thankful that he was helping me.

"What are neighbors for?"

I took a bite of the sandwich he gave me, and moments later Dean reached his thumb up and pressed it against the corner of my mouth. I froze as he did so. My heart beat wildly against my rib cage.

"You had some, uh, jelly." His voice was low. He sucked the jelly off of his thumb causing my entire body to heat up.

"Oh." Was all that I could say. My cheeks were on fire. I'm sure it was noticeable.

A new kind of tension settled over us as we sat in silence. I avoided his stare at all costs. But it was burning a hole straight through me, and I eventually gave in; his dark, cerulean colored eyes meeting mine.

Suddenly, I became super aware of my surroundings. I tried to be cautious as I chewed, but the peanut butter was sticking to the roof of my mouth and I probably looked like an idiot. My make up was most likely running down my face. I probably smelled like throw up. My apartment was messy.

"I should probably go to bed." I said and stood up a little too fast. "You should probably go."

The look of rejection on his face did not go unnoticed.

"Are you going to be okay?" He asked.

"Yeah. I'm good. Thanks again."

I opened the door and gestured for him to leave. He stepped through the threshold and turned as if he was going to say something else, but I shut the door before he could. I leaned up against the door as I took a deep breath.

_What was that?_

* * *

**Oh no, I think something has sparked.**

**1\. **Where Have You Been (Vice Club Mix) - Rhianna**  
**

**2\. **Do What U Want (Steven Madrid Remix) - Lady Gaga****

**4\. Loveeeeeee Song - Future feat. Rhianna**

**4\. Look After You - The Fray**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	9. Hi, Neighbor

**Author's Note:**

**I'd like to thank nattiebroskette, xSamiliciousx, Mandamirra10, Damnitambrose, ThatGirl54, fearloathingky, Rossi's Lil Devil, SinistergatesLegend, and dreamin'BIG. Bless you. May your lives be filled with happiness from this moment forward.**

**Last chapter I asked how you pictured the characters. This time I'm going to ask you what your favorite moment has been so far. It can be any moment from any chapter. Let me know in the reviews! Also, what would you like to see in the next chapter?**

**Enjoy, my loves.**

* * *

I had been avoiding Alisha for two weeks.

It wasn't on purpose, I had just been busy.

**Alisha Davis: **_"So, what happened when Dean took you home? ;)"_

**Alisha Davis: **_"Did you guys do anything?"_

**Alisha Davis:** _"Okay, I'm getting worried. Are you okay?"_

**Alisha Davis:** _"Quit watching Parks &amp; Rec and text me back!"_

**Alisha Davis:** _"I didn't mean anything by the Dean comments, I was joking."_

**Alisha Davis: **_"CALLIE JORDAN!"_

Okay, it was on purpose. Excuse me for not wanting to play twenty questions with Alisha about the night that I went home with my neighbor. I hadn't seen him since. Great time for him to go out of town, by the way. I could use the absence to get my thoughts together, because even I was still unsure about what happened.

Madison came through with her promise of putting in a good word for me with her boss and I had a job interview today. I was nervous and excited.

_"Callie." I had known Frank all my life. He had gone fishing with my dad many weekends, and he'd usually end up back at our house after those summer days frying fish on our stove and eating dinner with us. He was a short, white haired old man, who had battled cancer for years. But he had a big heart, and the town loved him._

_"Yes, Mr. Miller?" I asked, wringing my hands together nervously after wiping them on my new khakis that my mom had bought me._

_"You interested in working here?" __I wasn't, really. Miller's wasn't the ideal location to work. Next to Applebees, it wasn't the ideal place to eat, either. But Frank kept the tiny bar open, pouring his heart and soul into his prized possession. _

_It was really just a place for the hunters or the fishermen to get drunk at after they've been out in the woods all day. _

_I honestly had no interest in working here whatsoever._

_"Absolutely, Mr Mill-"_

_"Callie?"_

_"Yes sir?"_

_"You can call me Frank."_

_"Uh, yes sir- uh, Frank. I am very interested in working here. I heard that you needed part time help, and that's perfect for me because I'll be going to college soon and I'm not going to have the time to dedicate to a full time job."_

_"Okay. You're hired." He said just like that._

_"What?" I asked. "That's it?"_

_"Callie, I've known ya since you were a little critter. If I didn't think ya had what it took to work here, you wouldn't be sitting in my office, now would ya?." We were sitting at the bar. "Look, these men in here are rough, and they don't give a damn what any one thinks. You can handle 'em. I know you'll put 'em in there place 'cause that's how ya daddy raised ya!" _

_He was right. Over the next five years I had been groped, cat-called, proposed to, propositioned, and near sexually assaulted on a nightly basis. But I came to love it. _

_One of those nights I was sitting at a corner booth rolling silverware, my last task of the evening before I was able to call it a night and go home. _

_Stephen, our bartender took to the karaoke stage, coughed into the mic and said, "Jim over there bet me fifty bucks that I didn't have the balls to sing karaoke. Well, I'm about to be fifty bucks richer."_

_I laughed as the intro to "Brick House" began. Stephen was a tall, heavy set ginger guy who was deathly allergic to beets. I remember this one time the vegetable of the day was beets and he swelled up like a balloon. I mean, even more so than normal. Somewhere in the middle of the song he lifted his shirt up, but a chorus of 'boos' came from the audience._

_"Hey Cal," I heard from over the music. I looked over at the kitchen door to see my coworker, Amber, holding up the phone to me. "You've got a phone call."_

_"Hello?" I asked, knowing that it could only be one of my parents. James would have just texted me if he needed anything._

_"Ms. Jordan, it's Officer McHannon."_

I applied a layer of lipstick and rubbed my lips together. I was ready.

When Madison said she would put in a good word for me at her restaurant, I was expecting some hole-in-the-wall, two star, burger joint. I wasn't expecting to pull up to the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino on the strip. I wasn't expecting her restaurant to be TAP, one of the best, if not _the_ best, sports bars in Las Vegas. When I was researching the city after deciding to move here, TAP had come up as a restaurant you absolutely had to eat at. I mean, the place has deep fried s'mores. I could practically feel my arteries clogging before I even stepped through the front doors.

Madison was working that day. She was dressed in all black and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in; at least the dress code wasn't some short skirt, and weird suspenders get-up like it was in many Vegas restaurants. Her crazy, wild hair was pulled back, but stuck out in many different directions.

"Hey! You made it!" She said as she hugged me. "And you're early. Good. He likes early."

She led me back, through the kitchen, to a small office. After knocking on it twice, a firm _"come in"_ could be heard from the other side.

His name was Roger. He was the head chef and owner. He wasn't a business man, at least he didn't look like one. He was wearing a plain, navy blue t-shirt and what looked like pajama bottoms. He shook my hand firmly and invited me to sit down. Madison whispered a faint, _"good luck" _before exiting.

"So, Ms. Jordan, tell me about yourself."

"Well, my name is Callie Jordan. I'm twenty-two years old. I was born and raised in Wallman, Tennessee and just recently moved to Vegas. My hometown was made up of about 260 people, I kind of wanted to get out. I've only had one job my whole life, but I held it for five years. I worked there until I moved. Um-" I laughed nervously, not knowing what else to say.

Thankfully he took the hint. "And that was a place called Miller's, correct?" He thumbed through my application. I nodded. "That's a bar?"

"Yes sir. It's a sports bar. Basically all the men in town would cram themselves inside and just get drunk."

He laughed. "So you have no problem being a girl around a bunch of out of control men?"

"Not at all."

"Good. The last girl I hired realized she wasn't up for the job, which is why I'm looking for someone new. And you're friends with Madison, correct?"

Well, not really. "Yeah, she's great."

He smiled and nodded his head. "So what's your greatest strength?"

_I don't have one? _"I would have to say my attitude and my blunt personality."

Roger raised his eyebrows. _I probably shouldn't have said that. _"I like that. It's honest."

I let out a breath.

"What's your biggest weakness?"

"I don't have one." That was the biggest lie I've ever told, but employers like to hear confidence, so why not?

It caused the big man to laugh. "I think you're going to do well here. I've got your availability sheet. I'll be in touch, alright?" He jutted his hand in my direction one more time and I shook it, though I was confused. "Have a good day, Ms. Jordan."

I mumbled a "thank you", but it sounded like a question.

Madison stopped me on the way out, asking me how it went. I told her, but she didn't seem surprised at all. "He's very hard to read," she said, but assured me that he would call me back in a few days. I wasn't so sure, though. I took a takeout menu with me, just in case, for studying purposes. Rule number one of being a waitress: know the menu.

**Alisha Davis: **_"Madison told me you had a job interview today, yet you are still ignoring me. What is up with you? I hope I didn't say anything to upset you._

I texted her back quickly to let her know that I was sorry for ignoring her, and invited her over for pizza later. Then I sent James a quick message letting him know that I had just left my first job interview. I hadn't talked to my best friend as much as I was when I first moved to Vegas. I felt horrible about it, because I was making completely new friends here, and James was by himself in Small Town, USA.

The last thing I wanted was for us to grow apart.

When I got back to the apartment, the first thing I did was check my mailbox. Usually, I'd go a couple days without checking it, because I didn't get much. A few forwarded bills from Tennessee, a few magazines, a ValPack, and a letter. There was no return address, just my name and address scribbled on the front of an envelope in messy, blue ink.

There was a stamp in the corner; a picture of the Edinburgh Castle.

"Scotland?" I asked myself aloud as I ripped open the envelope.

It only had two words on it.

_"Hi neighbor."_

Three words, if you counted the big, blue smiley face he drew at the bottom. I sighed loudly and crumpled up the scrap piece of paper and threw it over my kitchen counter in the direction of the trash can.

A few hours later Alisha was knocking at my door. For the first time since I had met her, she wasn't dressed up. She wasn't wearing any make up, her hair wasn't curled to perfection, she wasn't wearing chunky jewelry. I wasn't dressed up, either; wearing just a pair of black sweats and my dad's old ACDC shirt that I had cut to make more comfortable.

She brushed past me and made a beeline straight for the couch.

No 'hello', 'how ya doing', nothing.

"Lish? What's wrong?"

"Reece broke up with me." Reece was Alisha's extremely posh boyfriend. I wasn't a fan of his from the get-go, and that didn't change the second time I met him at the club, either. Any guy who talks to their 'bros' about getting laid, regardless if it's by your girlfriend or not, is not the kind of guy any girl should be dating. Especially someone as gorgeous as Alisha.

"Good." I said and immediately kicked myself for doing so. She looked completely dejected. "I mean, I'm so sorry to hear that."

She laughed, but only for a moment. "Why haven't you been answering your phone?"

I sighed. "I'm sorry about that. I just really thought you were going to interrogate me about Dean and I didn't really want to talk about it."

"That's it? I thought you hated me."

"Why would I hate you?"

"I don't know."

I sat down beside her, placing a hand on her shoulder and giving it a small squeeze. "Lish, you're like my only friend here."

"You too." She replied quietly. My eyebrows came together. That couldn't be true. Alisha had a million friends. "I'm serious, Cal. Those people that I go to the club with, they don't really like me. They like my job. They like my status. They like that I know people and can get them on the list. They like the free drinks. They didn't really like _me._"

"I'm sure that's not true."

"No it's true." She persisted. "No one texts me to ask me how I am. They ask 'where's the next party at', or 'is anything happening this weekend'. and now Reece broke up with me. Like half my friends were his friends."

I didn't know what to say. This was a surprise to me. Alisha was, in my eyes, the epitome of perfection. Sure, her tan was fake, and she wasn't a real blonde, but she seemed to have everything together. She was twenty-four, she had a stable job, she lived in a house, and owned a Mercedes that was completely paid for. I only wished my life was that stable.

"Us small town girls gotta stick together." I said, giving her a side hug. "And screw Reece. That asshole did not deserve you."

She only gave me a smug smile and wiped a tear from her eye.

"Look, let's order like three pizzas, extra cheese, and cinnamon sticks, and you can pick some movies. How's that sound? You can stay here tonight. We'll cheer you up, Callie style." She nodded. "Alright, what's the number for Papa John's?"

"254-7272."

She chose Frozen, Easy A, Tangled, and Pitch Perfect. I was more of a Nicolas Sparks girl myself when I was sad, but if Alisha wanted to cry over Rapunzel then I wasn't going to complain. I had never been put in this situation before. James had never come crying to me about a girl breaking up with him, and that was because James was gay, and in a town of only 262 people there weren't many other gay guys around his age.

And I had never gone and cried to James about someone breaking up with me because I cried to my parents about it instead, and because I had really only had one boyfriend. And that was Jared, the douchebag.

But if I had gone to a friend and cried about my boy problems, this is how I would want to be treated.

Alisha stood up from the couch and stretched after Tangled had ended. "Do you want another slice?" She asked. I shook my head. "Do you mind if I have another slice?"

"Yes, please don't eat any of the pizza that I bought for you." I said sarcastically.

I took the DVD out of the player and popped it back in the case. Next was Pitch Perfect.

"What's this?" I heard her ask from the kitchen. She was holding up Dean's crumpled up letter that I had completely forgot about. "Hi neighbor?" She asked and looked at me, holding up the wrinkled note for me to see. "Is this from Dean?"

"Uh, yeah. He sent that to me from Scotland, I think."

"He sent you a letter from Scotland? Girl, you must've put it on him good that night he took you home."

I rolled my eyes. "I did not put anything on him."

"But he's sending you letters from Scotland?"

"He's a creep!" I replied snatching the letter from her hand and pinning it to the fridge. "And besides, that's hardly a letter."

"Girl, you need to hop on that before the ship sails. I know girls that would kill to be in your position."

"Ew, no. Why? He's a complete jerk, and he's balding."

"Don't you know who he is?" She asked. "That's Dean Ambrose."

"And that means what to me?"

"He's a WWE Superstar."

* * *

**And the secret is out! I wonder how Dean is going to react when he finds out that she knows.**

**That part about the job interview was literally a page pulled right out of my life. When I went in for an interview at the restaurant I work for currently, those were the only questions my boss asked me. And then dismissed me like I had failed the test or something. The question is, though... will Callie get the job?**

**1\. Fear - Weekender**

**2\. Brick House - The Commodores**

**3\. The Business - X Ambassadors**

**4\. Since U Been Gone - Ester Dean, Skylar Astin**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	10. Maybe

**Authors Note:**

**Hey! Ten chapters! I honestly never expected to go past three...**

**As always, I'd like to thank my supporters: the amazing nattiebroskette, the lovely Sinistergateslegend, the awesome Peachilee, sweet ThatGirl54, the fantastic dreamin'BIG, the delightful xSamiliciousx, the inspiring UntilNeverDawns, and the wonderful Rossi's Lil Devil.**

**Next question, what are your thoughts on Alisha? Do we like her, hate her, have no real feelings towards her? How many of you think she's a skank and will eventually end up stabbing Callie in the back? And how many of you think she's totally nice and has potential to really be a major part in this story? Inquiring minds want to know!**

* * *

A WWE Superstar.

To be honest, I had to look up what a WWE Superstar was. I was sure that it was some kind of sport, and even then I was guessing, because I honestly had no clue. After that, I spent countless hours on Youtube watching video after video of Dean Ambrose the "Lunatic Fringe". The Shield. All that shit, I watched all of it. However, it didn't matter how famous he was. It didn't matter to me if he was the best wrestler in the world, which he wasn't. Apparently that was a guy named CM Punk.

He was still a smirky bastard.

And besides, this kind of wrestling is fake.

_"He's a WWE Superstar." Alisha said with stars in her eyes._

_I scrunched up my face. A what? What's that supposed to mean? He's famous? "Whatever, it doesn't matter. I don't like him, he's still a jerk, and a bad neighbor."_

I ended the conversation there.

Thankfully Roger made good on his word and called me a few days after my interview and officially hired me. I had been too immersed in my new job to really give any thought to Dean, which was nice. I had truly missed the feeling of being busy. However, scrounging for all the hours that I could possibly get meant less time to hang out with Alisha who had really gone off the deep end since her break up with Reece. When I say she went off the deep end, she really _dove_ off.

She had called me four times in the last two weeks around two in the morning, drunk, asking me to come pick her up. She had practically begged me to either come sleep over at my place or for me to come over to her house because she "didn't want to be alone". And not only that, but the worst of it all was that she was being used as a booty call to the scumbag who broke up with her in the first place.

It was my day off. I was thankful, because as much as I wanted to work, my feet were extremely sore and my lower back was killing me. I rolled out of bed, pulling my hair up on the top of my head, and made my way into the kitchen for some breakfast.

I opened the refrigerator door and pulled out my carton of milk, cursing under my breath after noticing that there was only a few chugs left in it. As I closed the fridge, something caught my eye. "Hi neighbor". I stared at the note for a moment, thinking back on the little games we had going on.

_Who knew professional wrestlers could be so childish?_

Almost on cue I heard the elevator ring and the sound of a suitcase being pulled down the hallway. I bolted to my front door, milk carton still in hand, and peaked through the hole to see Dean passing my door.

"Hey!" I yelled as I threw the door open.

He jumped, dropping his keys on the floor, holding a hand over his chest. "What the fuck?!" He turned around and just stared at me for a moment, a smirk tugged at his lips.

I looked down at myself, remembering that I was wearing a t-shirt that was three sizes too big for me and a pair of men's boxers. I was also holding a carton of milk. And my hair was in a sloppy bun that was partially falling apart.

"Can I help you?" He asked as he picked his keys up.

I couldn't think of what to say. I stuttered for a few moments before I finally managed to squeeze out, "uh, welcome home."

"Thanks?"

"No problem. See you around."

I turned around quickly, shutting my door behind me. My heart felt like it was in my throat.

_What was that, _I scolded myself.

For the rest of the day, I kept to myself in the apartment, staying occupied. I dusted, vacuumed, cleaned the kitchen counters. I even made my bed, which I never do, because I had always felt like it was a pointless waste of energy.

I was sitting on the couch, reading a book and listening to Janis Joplin, when a soft knock came from the door. I quickly ran to the hallway bathroom and checked myself in the mirror. I tugged at my hair, letting it fall loosely from it's bun, and took a piece of toilet paper to my face so that it didn't look so oily.

Before I opened the door, I checked my reflection in the picture frame that hung on the wall one last time.

"Hey, what's up?" I asked Dean as he leaned against the threshold.

"Do you want to like, I don't know, hang out or something?" He held up a six pack of beer. "I've got beer."

"You want to hang out with me?" My eyes narrowed at him. This was probably another prank. This time he was probably going to throw me out the window to see if I'd land in the pool. I wouldn't put it past him, honestly.

"Well, yeah."

"Um, okay."

I swung the door open, allowing him to come inside, thankful that I had changed earlier after having cleaned.

He took one look around the apartment and said, "Wow, you actually cleaned."

"If you're going to be rude you can just see yourself out, sir."

"It was a compliment." He says as he went to put the case of beer in the fridge. "Well look at that." I heard him say as he cracked a can open.

"What?"

He pointed to his letter that was still pinned to the front of the refrigerator for some reason. "You kept my note."_  
_

I immediately ripped the note down and tossed it in the trash can. I could hear him pull it back out of the trash and un-crinkle it, as I walked back to the couch. I plopped down and marked the page on my book, setting it on the silence was deafening as I watched him look around my apartment. He scoped out my DVD collection, obviously displeased with it. And then thumbed through my dad's records.

"Impressive." He says. "They yours?"

"They were my dad's."

"Were?"

_Shit._

"He gave them to me." I replied, saving myself.

"He has good taste."

"Mhm."

The silence settled in again. Dean took a sip of his beer and sat down on the couch next to me. He seemed so out of place. Not that he wasn't comfortable, because he was making himself right at home, but I couldn't get over the fact that he was here. Again, I mean, he had been here before. But I wasn't thinking clearly then, and I let him wipe jelly off of my face.

"Why'd you move to Vegas?" He asked. It surprised me.

"What?"

"You're obviously not from here." He replied, taking another swig of his beer.

"Oh, you wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

"I threw a dart on a map. It landed on Vegas twice."

"That's really funny."

"Why?" I asked, standing up to also grab a beer from the fridge. I pulled the Doritos out of the cupboard, too.

"Because I kind of did the same thing. Only, I was in Germany and I just got on a plane and decided to fly to Vegas. I never left."

I passed him the bag of chips. "Germany? Were you wrestling there?" He cut me a look. "Alisha told me you were a wrestler."

He sighed, setting his beer on the table, and ran a hand through his hair. "Fuck."

"What?" I asked. He seemed upset by it.

"No wonder you've been so different."

"Excuse me?"

"All you girls are the same, man." He stood up like he was going to leave. "You find out a dude is famous and you could give two shits about is personality or who he really is. It's just money, money, money after that."

"Whoa, hold up. It wouldn't matter to me if you were Donald Trump. I invited you in my house because you were very nice to me the last time I saw you, and I figured that there would be no harm in getting to know you. I watched your little wrestling videos. It's dumb. I'm not a fan. Cool for you, you're a famous wrestler, that's awesome! But I don't have a single fuck to give."

Dean stood there speechless for a moment before slowly sitting back down.

"Sorry." He mumbled. "I don't go around boasting about my profession. It makes meeting people hard. Especially genuine people."

"How'd you get into it, anyway?"

"I just kind of knew that this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life and then I worked my ass off. No one just falls into professional wrestling. It takes a lot of fuckin' hard work and a lot of dedication."

"Do you ever get tired of it?" I asked.

"It gets tiresome, and there have been a lot of moments where I sat down and really asked myself what the fuck I was doing, you know? But have I gotten tired of it? Nah."

"I think that's really cool that you kind of achieved your dream."

"Yeah, what about you?" He asked. "Are you achieving your dream?"

I fought the urge to laugh and hid it by taking a sip of beer. "Not at all."

"Why not?"

I thought about it for a moment. There were so many things holding me back. Things that I couldn't let go of. That I _refused_ to let go of. I was a business major who dreamed of owning her own bookstore one day; where people could buy, sell, and trade books like a Gamestop. Yet I have been working in bars since I was seventeen. Was I scared? Did I just get lazy and settle?_  
_

I shrugged, crossing my legs to sit Indian-style. As I did so, my knee briefly rested on Dean's leg. The unintended contact stopped my breathing momentarily, but I didn't move. I stayed where I was, letting our bodies touch in the most innocent way, and felt absolutely guilty about it. Dean's eyes dropped to the knee that softly touched his thigh, and then dragged his eyes back to mine.

"Uh," I said clearing my throat, deciding to shift myself in my seat. "are you hungry or something?" I changed the subject quickly, begging for him to stop looking at me like that. His bright blue eyes were like crystalline swimming pools that I wanted to dive in to.

The tension that I felt the night he carried me home from the club had settled in the space between us once more.

"Where are you from?"

_Now isn't the time for the question game._

"A small town in Tennessee." I replied, still caught in his stare.

_Is he getting closer?_

"Why'd you move here?"

_Why are his eyes so blue?_

"I needed a change of scenery."

The record that had been playing began to skip sporadically. I got up to fix it, and heard Dean clear his throat. I could see him going back to the fridge to grab another beer. As the music began to softly play again, I softly swayed to the rhythm. I could feel Dean watching me, but I didn't care. This was one of my favorite songs.

A hand sneaked around my waist and I jumped to the touch. "Wh-what are you doing?"

"That wasn't an invitation?" He asked.

"If I wanted to dance with you, I would have asked."

A smile tugged at his lips, but he turned away as he tried to hide it. "Oh, I'm sorry." He replied as he gulped his beer. He belched loudly, causing me to scrunch up my nose.

"You're gross." I said. He smiled and plopped back down on the couch. I moved to stand in front of him and held my hand out, sighing dramatically. "Since there isn't anyone else, would you like to dance?"

"Oh now you want to dance? It's only after I show you my awesome burping skills."

"One, you're a pig. Two, I can top that any day." I grabbed the can out of his hand and chugged the rest of the sour liquid, letting out a gnarly burp afterwards.

"You're sick."

"What!?" I held my hands up. "So it's okay if you do it because you're a guy, right?"

"Precisely."

He took my hand and pulled me to him as we slow danced to the melodic voice of Janis. It was nice. The only other person I had slow danced with was James. And of course my dad at my parent's wedding. I never got to slow dance with douchebag Jared, because he dumped me before the school dance.

We danced in silence. I could hear his heart beat as I rested my head on his chest. It was calm, just like he was. I could practically feel mine about to jump right out of my chest. I had no idea what was happening. We were just two neighbors- friends- just two people slow dancing. It was totally normal to slow dance with your neighbor, right?

"This is nice." He said softly.

I went to reply, but my phone rang loudly before I could get out a response.

I sighed when I saw the caller I.d. "It's Alisha."

"Don't answer it." He replied. "She'll leave a voicemail."

"She's probably drunk." Dean looked confused. "She's been going through a lot."

I held the phone to my ear and listened to the obvious club music in the background. I was right.

"Alisha?" I asked.

_"Callie!? Hey! Hey girl, how are you doing?"_

"Lish, are you okay?"

_"Cal, I'm- I'm at Hakkasan. I am so drunk, Cal." _She was laughing. _"What are you doing!? You should come hang out! Drinks on meee!"_

"I'm going to come get you, okay?" She mumbled something before the line went dead. I sighed as I slid my phone into my back pocket. Dean watched me with eyebrows raised. "I have to go get her."

"Want me to come with?" He asked.

"No, it's- I got it. I appreciate this, hanging out, it was fun."

He nodded and followed me out, taking a few steps down the hallway to his own door. "See you later."

I smiled at him as I boarded the elevator, making a mental note to kick Alisha's drunk ass for ruining my night.

* * *

**I figured I owed you guys a little more Dean time than you were getting. You're welcome.**

**Don't think that Sassy Callie and Jerk Dean are gone forever now that they are getting a little bit more comfortable with each other.**

**1\. Piece Of My Heart - Janis Joplin**

**2\. I Need A Man To Love - Janis Joplin**

**3\. Me and Bobby McGee - Janis Joplin**

**4\. Maybe - Janis Joplin**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged, as always. And I love you, as always.**


	11. Wicked Games

**Author's Note:**

**It's interesting hearing what you guys think about the supporting characters, and how you envision them. I see we have some Alisha supporters, and some who just could care less. Some people see Callie as a long haired brunette, and other's see her with short, blonde hair. Some people don't even like Callie, and that's okay too. But regardless, I love your thoughts and opinions. **

**For me personally, my favorite parts (I have more than one) so far have been when Callie's knee accidentally rested on Dean's leg, when he got the jelly from the corner of her mouth, and "Fuck your Sun Chips". Basically, any sexual tension and Callie being a total BAMF. **

**Special thank you to UntilNeverDawns, Damnitambrose, lookitsria, xSamiliciousx, nattiebroskette, Rossi's Lil Devil, nmoxracha, Sinistergateslegend, Mandamirra10, and 00redsvt. You guys are amazing.**

**I'm glad some of you are paying attention to the playlist. They are there for a reason! They set the mood. I'm a music guru!**

* * *

When I woke up the next morning, I had completely forgotten that Alisha had crashed on the couch. That was, until I smelled something burning coming from the kitchen.

I slumped out of bed and made my way into the front room.

Alisha was fully dressed, hair and make up done, standing over my stove with a cocktail in her hand as she made breakfast. Or at least she was trying to. A thin cloud of smoke hovered over her as she danced with herself.

"What are you doing?" I asked her.

She whipped around quickly giving me a bright smile. "I went to the store while you were sleeping." She said as she took a sip of her drink. She had obviously been to the liquor store as well. "I stocked your kitchen. You've been so nice to me and I wanted to thank you. Breakfast?"

I stepped towards her cautiously, peering into the pan. "What is it?"

"Hand-cut fried potatoes. There's bacon and pancakes over there." She motioned to the plates on the counter with aluminum foil over them.

A loud knock came from the door.

"Who is it?" Alisha asked as I looked through the peephole.

"It's Dean." I whispered.

I hardly looked ready for company other than Lish.

"Open the door." She replied.

Dean stood in the hallway, obviously having just got out of bed, hair sticking out in every direction. He ran a hand through it quickly, trying to contain it, as I opened the door. He gave me a quick smile.

"You okay in here?" He asked.

"Why do you ask?"

"Because I smelled something burning."

He poked his head around the door, getting a quick glance of my apartment. Alisha smiled widely at him from the kitchen. I really hoped, and I mean I desperately prayed that she wasn't going to try to invite him for breakfast. I was starving, and there were not enough pancakes for three people. Especially a large, hulking man who's stomach was probably a bottomless pit.

"Hi Dean!" She said. "Are you hungry, I made breakfast!"

I tried to signal to Alisha not to do this. I was practically waving my hands in the air in a grand gesture. She didn't take the hint though, and continued to tell him that she had made bacon and pancakes and potatoes.

"Uh, are you sure it's okay? I wouldn't want to impose." He looked down at me. I gave him a small smile unable to say anything now without being rude. I shot daggers at Alisha as soon as he turned back around.

"You wouldn't be imposing! We'd love to have you." She gave me an innocent smile as Dean stepped all the way into the apartment. I closed the door behind him and stomped off towards my room, slamming the door shut behind me.

_I wasn't aware that this was Casa de Alisha,_ I thought to myself as I pulled a pair of jeans and a blouse out of my closet. I looked at myself in the mirror and frowned. Standing next to Alisha, the two of us would like look those 'Celebrities Without Makeup: Before and After' photos. Obviously, Alisha would be the picture of the beautiful, airbrushed girl on the red carpet with her perfectly curled blonde hair and her tan skin, and her flawless eyebrows. And I would just be frumpy girl that was caught taking the trash out on a hot day.

Not that I needed to compare myself to Alisha, but if I were a guy, I would pick Lish without a doubt. I was sure that Dean was no different. Not that he mattered, or anything.

When I stepped back out into the hallway, I could see him smiling at something she was saying. I sighed internally. This wasn't going to be fun. Last night when I went to sleep after getting Alisha situated on the couch, I had figured she'd be gone when I woke up like she was every other time. I didn't expect her linger around.

I propped myself up on the bar stool next to Dean.

"You look nice." He said in a soft voice so that Alisha couldn't hear him over her rambling.

Of course he was being sarcastic.

"Dean, how many pancakes would you like?" Alisha asked him. "I made a dozen."

"I'll take four, if that's okay." He said shyly.

"Of course it's okay!" She fixed him up a large plate and sat it in front of him. "Callie?"

"Two, please." _Even though I could have eaten all twelve if you hadn't invited the trashy neighbor._

We ate in silence. I had offered Alisha my seat at the island because she had been _so nice_ in making me breakfast. But I only had two bar stools, so I ended up standing awkwardly against the kitchen counter as Dean and Alisha ate at the island. Every few seconds Alisha looked like she was going to attempt to make small talk, but decided against it. Everyone was too busy stuffing their face, anyways, so it was useless.

Dean's eyes never left me. It was uncomfortable, to say the least, and as hard as I tried to keep my eyes down; focused on the tiles of the floor, the patterns in the marble counter top, the food on my plate, I somehow found myself locked in a staring contest with the man. His eyes were like magnets. Like some kind of spell kept you from looking away for too long.

Alisha cleared her throat after a few moments which broke my gaze.

"Hey, can I borrow you for a minute?" She asked.

I nodded and sat my plate down, allowing her to drag me back to my bedroom.

"What is going on with you two?" She yelled in a whisper as soon as she shut the door behind herself.

"What are you talking about?"

"You're basically fucking each other with your eyes." She replied. "I'm extremely uncomfortable."

"_You're_ uncomfortable!? The creepazoid keeps staring at me! How do you think I feel!?"

"I don't believe you. You're not fooling me! Since when does Dean Ambrose come over for breakfast!?" She was still whisper shouting.

"Since you invited him! Didn't you see me!? I was sending you the signal not to!"

"What signal?"

I waved my hands in the air, and mouthed the words 'no' and 'stop' like I had done earlier. "That signal! That means 'do not invite this man over for breakfast, I don't want him in my apartment'!"

"I thought you were telling me that you wanted me to invite him." Either she was lying or she was even more stupid than I thought.

"Can you go get rid of him or something?"

She sighed and walked back out into the hallway. I stayed behind in my room to eavesdrop on the conversation.

_"Well," _She said. I could hear her picking up plates and scraping them off in the sink before putting them in the dishwasher. _"I think I'm going to head out. It was nice seeing you, I hope you enjoyed breakfast." _

What was she doing? She was supposed to be getting rid of him, not leaving him with me.

_"It was delicious, thank you. I haven't had a home cooked breakfast in a long time." _Dean replied.

I stepped out in to the hallway, glaring at Alisha as she gathered her belongings. "Where are you going?" I asked her flatly.

"I have a hangover. Not really feeling too good, have fun!" She winked and disappeared out the door.

Dean was still scraping some potatoes from his plate. "She seems pretty chipper for someone with a hangover." He said with a full mouth. "And wasn't she just drinking?"

My shoulders slumped as I fell on the couch. I heard the stool scooting across the floor, followed by the sounds of Dean cleaning his plate. I closed my eyes and wished with all my might that I could just go back to sleep.

"So what are your plans for the day?" He asked. My eyes shot open when I felt him lift my legs up off the couch so that he could sit down. Once he made himself comfortable, he replaced my legs across his lap.

_When did we become this comfortable with each other,_ I asked myself.

That's right, we didn't.

I sat up quickly, swinging my legs off the couch and sat forward.

"What?" He asked. Rhetorical question, obviously, because before I could say anything he said, "Oh, right. I forgot. You don't like me."

I was confused. Where was this coming from?

"Why is that, by the way?" He asked.

I asked myself the same question a million times a day. My answer was that I didn't _not_ like him. I couldn't let him know that, though. "Well, for starters you're a jerk."

"I'm a jerk?"

"Yeah, you are. You're rude and sarcastic, and creepy, and too old, and-" I was running out of things to say. "And you never brush your hair!"

He laughed. "Well you're a calloused bitch."

"You're a greasy scumbag!"

"You're a prude!"

"You're stupid!"

We had yelled each other to the door, and I was physically pushing Dean out into the hallway.

He turned around and caught the door before I could slam it shut. "You're a childish, little twat!"

"_Ergh!" _I yelled as I slammed the door shut, balling my fists and hitting it a few times. "This is why I didn't want you to come over for breakfast."

_"Well it fucking sucked anyways!" _He yelled from the other side.

"Good! I hope it fucking poisons your insides and you fucking rot!"

It was quiet for a second before I heard him laughing. _Laughing. _He was laughing at me. If anything made me furious, it was people laughing at me when I was trying to be serious. I pulled the door open to see him leaning up against the wall, holding his middle as he genuinely laughed.

"This isn't funny." I stated.

"No, it's hilarious." He said as he straightened himself up and caught his breath. "You trying to be all intimidating and mean, it's hilarious, and cute, and I'm gonna tell you right now, Callie. I don't buy it for one minute. I see you. And I'm sick of these fucking childish games."

He took one step across the hallway and stood so close to me that I could feel the fabric of our clothes slightly pulling on the other's. My heart dropped to my ankles as I tried to control my breathing, which had become frantic in mere seconds.

This was too close. Way too close.

My entire body ached for him, though. I needed him to touch me. My life felt like it depended on it. He placed his index finger underneath my chin, tilting my head to look at him. His eyes were low, soft and hungry, and beautiful, and just _so blue_. I felt completely exposed underneath his crystal stare. His finger moved from my chin, down my jawline, and he cupped my neck with his hand.

I couldn't control myself, and I knew he could tell. He knew exactly what he was doing.

"So you wanna tell me again? Why you don't like me?" His voice was hoarse, filled with confidence and lust.

I couldn't even think straight, let alone talk straight.

"That's what I thought." Dean smirked, pulling his hand from my neck, and took a step back.

Before I could even think to blink, Dean had disappeared through his door.

I was left speechless.

* * *

**Well shit.**

**1\. Breezeblocks - alt J**

**2\. ****Wicked Game - HIM**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	12. The Truth

**Author's Note:**

**There are two small moments in this chapter that foreshadows something big that will happen in the future. Does anyone want to guess what they are?**

**Big thanks to nmoxracha, nattiebroskette, Cougar3371, xSamiliciousx, Rossi's Lil Devil, UntilNeverDawns, fearloathingky, Sinistergateslegend, Mandamirra10, ThatGirl54, and mox9 for reviewing. You know I love you all. How many times do I have to say it?**

* * *

I had hours before I was supposed to be at work, and all that I could think about was the way I felt under his touch. The warmth of his hand, the peppermint gum on his breath, the indigo strands in his eyes. I was romanticizing it way too much, and over thinking it even more, but I couldn't deny the way this guy made me feel.

I wanted to be strong. I wanted to stubborn and hardheaded. I wanted to push away every feeling that I had, good or bad, and go back to the person that I was when I first moved here. No frilly, gossamer blouses. No high heels. No make up. No Alisha. No Dean. Just me and a good, long TV show marathon.

I didn't want to accept the truth that was right in front of me. And I couldn't figure out if it was because the truth scared the living shit out of me, or because my gut was screaming at me that this was a bad idea. That I should know better. Or maybe it was both.

But the truth was that the bastard had weaseled his way under my skin and I liked him.

Of course, there was a problem with that. A problem that I didn't know the answer to, because I didn't know anything about him. I knew his name, and the only reason I knew his last name is because someone else told me. Someone else also told me what he did for a living. He liked beer, cheep beer at that, and also pancakes. I knew we moved to Vegas in a similar fashion, and that he had been to Germany. And he thought my record selection was impressive.

But that was it. When I thought about it, I actually felt a little pathetic.

I didn't know him at all.

Dean challenged me. He was clever. He was the center of attention in the crowd, and yet seemed so reserved and shy. Not to mention how passionate he was. That was a no-brainer after watching a few of his matches. He was funny, laid back, and he liked to dance.

I wanted to hate him. But I didn't, and so far could not find one single characteristic that I didn't completely admire. He might have been too attractive, but that was it. And he was attractive. Boy, was he attractive. I'd be a liar if I said I hadn't broken out in a cold sweat at three o'clock in the morning because I couldn't stop thinking about that deep, rough voice in my ear as his hands gripped me in my most intricate places. I blushed just thinking about it. There was a wild animal inside of him, rabid with instinct and desire and a lunacy I was desperate to delve in to.

One of us had to be the bigger person, here.

I stepped into the elevator and swiftly tapped the *L button. A good, long shift would be good for my brain. I needed something else to occupy my thoughts for a while. Just for a while though, because I was dead set on settling this score sooner rather than later. I needed to do it before he skipped town again, and it'd be another month, month in a half before I saw him.

The bell rang and the elevator doors sprang open. I was not expecting Dean to be standing there when they did. The air grew tight around me, and suddenly I wished for a meteor to just fall out of the sky and directly on to me. "Hey." I said quietly. I wasn't even sure if he heard me.

He had a pair of dark sunglasses on, they sat awkwardly on his face, and even though I couldn't see his eyes, I was almost certain he was glaring at me. He brushed past, not saying a word, leaving me in confusion as I watched him board the elevator.

"Can I help you?" He said right as the door shut.

I bit the inside of my cheek, fighting the urge to march my ass right back upstairs and start World Ward III right in this apartment building. I didn't, though, and I couldn't.

One of us had to be the bigger person.

As it seemed, Mr. Hot Shot Superstar, was not the one to do it.

He said he was sick of the games, and yet, here he was playing them. Giving me a dose of my own medicine.

The worst part about it was that, yes, I liked him, but what does he think? What was going on in that private mind of his? It sounded so immature to wonder if he liked me too, because I wasn't in second grade. This wasn't elementary school. We were both adults. The next note to get passed between us wasn't going to have a 'yes', 'no', 'maybe' option at the bottom. I wasn't going to get my heart broken like I did when I was sixteen. I wasn't going to wait around, and get my hopes, only to end up completely disappointed.

I was going to take a page right out of my mom's book, walk right up to the man, and tell him how I feel.

Of course, the more I thought about it throughout the day, the more awful it sounded. What was I going to say to him that wouldn't end up being some stupid, sarcastic remark that wasn't what I originally meant to say at all? And God knows if he pulls some stunt like he did this morning, I wouldn't be able to say anything at all.

Why was this so hard?

Why couldn't I just man up and do what needed to be done?

Why was I over thinking it so much?

I pulled out my phone as I waiting in traffic and dialed James' number.

_"Hey, you've reached James. Leave a message and I'll call you back when I get the chance, thanks."_

"Hey it's me. You're best friend, Callie. I don't know if you forgot who I was or not, because I feel like I haven't talked to you in so long, but whenever you get the chance, just call me back. I miss you. Bye."

When I got to work, we were already slammed. It was easy to just forget about any problems I had when my soul priority was to make sure my costumers were happy, which they always were. If I even thought of something other than getting ketchup for my table, I'd set myself back and end up forgetting the ketchup all together.

Before I knew it I was on my way back home. My palms we sweaty. I was nervous, my knees were shaking. I took the long way back, adding a good twenty minutes to my commute. I stopped to get gas, picking up a bag of chips and a drink while I was there. A lump formed in my throat as I pulled into my parking spot and saw Dean's S.U.V a few spots down. I was secretly hoping that he wouldn't be home. With each step I took towards that elevator, my heart sunk. By the time that I got to my floor, it was at my knees.

I decided to change before I went though with this. Get in to something a little bit more comfortable, and hopefully not look like I had just worked all night long. However, when I looked at my closet I was having a difficult time deciding what to wear. Do I try to look cute? Do I go for relaxed? Do I go all out and wear a dress? Obviously not, I didn't want to look like I was trying too hard. Or at all, really. I decided on a pair of fitted, grey sweats and a white top. Nothing too extra, even though I did reapply my lipstick and spritz myself with perfume so that I didn't smell like beer and peanuts.

As I paced the hallway outside of his room, I could hear his TV. Every few seconds he would laugh, and butterflies would flutter in my stomach, making me second guess myself. I had already turned around and headed back for my apartment at least six times, but each time I found myself standing right back in front of his door, fist hovering, ready to knock.

_"Just do it." _I heard my mother's voice in the back of my head.

Fine.

I swallowed my pride and mustered up the courage and knocked a few times.

"Yes?" He asked as he opened the door.

I held up the bag of Sun Chips that I bought at the gas station. "Truce?"

He smirked, snatching the bag out of my hand and disappearing back into his apartment. He left the door open, but I wasn't sure if he was coming back, or if he was inviting me in.

"You can come in, ya know." He said.

His apartment was the mirror image of mine, only shockingly empty. He had a couch, an entertainment center, and a coffee table. That was it. There wasn't a single picture hanging on the wall, no decorations. Just plain emptiness.

I stood there awkwardly in the middle of his living room as he sat on the couch and munched his Sun Chips. "You wanna sit down?"

"Uh- I, uh- Um, I came here to talk to you." I said.

"Well can you sit down and do it? You're making me nervous."

Making _him _nervous? Ha.

I cautiously sat next to him on his couch. He eyed me suspiciously as I tried to form words in my head.

"You know what, fuck it." I said throwing all caution to the wind. "You're insufferable. You're a comple-"

"Are we really doing this again?"

"Look, I don't know how to tell someone I like them without insulting them first, okay? Can you just please not interrupt me?"

He narrowed his eyes at me, but gestured for me to finish what I was going to say.

I sighed. "What I'm trying to say is that you're rude, and insolent, and I don't like you. But for some fucking unknown reason I can't stop thinking about you and it's driving me fucking crazy. Take it however you want, but I'm sick of playing cat and mouse. No more games. We're both adults."

After a few moments, after he didn't say anything, I gave up any bit of hope that I was clinging on to that thought he might feel the same way. Without another word, I stood up, making my way towards the exit.

"Wait, Callie." I heard him say from behind me.

I whipped around to face him, ready to go on a tangent about how it was totally fine that he was just fucking with me the whole time, and how I really didn't expect anything else. How I didn't get my hopes up and that I would be just fucking peachy. But as soon as I turned around, he was towering over me, looking down at me with those perfect baby blues.

His hand found it's way to my neck once more, and my skin lit up like a wild fire. I would have never imagined how good it would feel for a man to touch me. A real man. Not letting sixteen year old, douchebag Jared feel me up in the school parking lot. I had only dreamed of moments like these.

"If you're gonna kiss me, just do it, and don't fuck with me this time." I whispered as he held his lips right over mine. Mere centimeters would close the space between us.

"You're fucking crazy, you know that?" He replied. His voice was low and as smooth as honey. As his lips moved they grazed mine, sending the coldest shivers down my spine. My whole body was screaming for him to touch me, please just touch me. _Touch me and kiss me, and do whatever you want._

"If I were a betting woman, I'd say you liked i-"

He closed the small space between our lips with a slow, lingering kiss that took the breath right out of my lungs. My legs wrapped around his torso as he lifted me up to meet his height, and my hands snaked through his curls. I had been completely unaware that he was carrying me towards the bedroom until he laid me down on the bed.

I tried to keep my mind in check, though it was overfilled with too many scenarios of what was going to happen next.

None of those scenarios mattered, so long as he didn't stop kissing me.

His mouth moved from my lips to my cheeks, then delicately placing sweet kisses on my jawline to my neck, down to my chest, and back to my lips. My hands pulled up his black beater, allowing me to feel his warm skin. I wanted to feel his chest weighing down on me, his hips between mine. I wanted this.

"Dean," I whispered between kisses and moans.

"Hmm?"

"When are you leaving again?" I needed to know.

"In the morning." He tilted my head so that he could attack my neck in a vicious kiss that prompted another moan from my lips.

"Dean, we can't." I said. He rolled back on the bed, sitting with his legs out in front of him. "Not when you leave in mere hours."

Call me old-fashioned, but I didn't want my first time to be on some random night and wake up a lone with a note on the pillow that said "Sorry, but I had to catch a flight, you can see yourself out". Maybe I had high standards, or maybe it was the way that I was raised, but I wanted there to be at least something special about it.

It was quiet for a moment. I wasn't sure what to do or say next. Dean played with a frayed thread on his bedspread.

"Well, I should probably go." It was the most awkward moment of my life.

"Why?" He asked, a little too quickly. "Uh, you can always stay."

"I shouldn't." I slid off the bed, running a hand through my wild hair.

Dean got up, too, not even trying to hide the bulge in his sweats. I blushed, adverting my eyes down to the floor. He walked me back to the front door, silently. I stepped through, turning around to give him a sheepish smile.

"I wont be back for another six weeks."

My smile was gone instantly. Why that long?

"Then I'll see you in six weeks." I said, trying not to look too disappointed.

"I guess so." He replied as I turned around and took the few steps to my door.

I looked back at him one more time and gave him a small smile before I closed the door.

What in the hell was I going to do for six weeks?

* * *

**Oh Callie, our little twenty-two year old virgin. So stubborn, so young, so bold.**

**Let me know what you guys are thinking, yeah?**

**1\. Break The Fall - Laura Welsh**

**2\. Kiss Me - Ed Sheeran**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged.**


	13. Win Some, Lose Some

**Author's Note:**

**Enjoy this obvious filler chapter that I felt the need to give you before I head off for work today.**

**Here's a special treat. When I was writing that last chapter and Callie gave Dean the Sun Chips as a truce gift, I just really wanted to have Dean throw them on the ground and be like 'Fuck yo Sun Chips' and then slam the door in her face. The End. The story would be over. But, I totally decided against that because I'm not that mean. Wouldn't that have been a great ending!?**

**So far you've all be wrong! Callie's virginity is not one of the 'crucial moments to the plot' that I was talking about. That's a big deal, obviously, but bigger things are on the horizon for this story. *maniacal laughter* **

**Anyways. Hey, look reviewers! Thanks again to Sinistergateslegend, ThatGirl54, nattiebroskette, Cougar3371 (thanks for reading twice you flatter me), Mandamirra10, dreamin'BIG, nmoxracha, Rossi's Lil Devil, and the lovely Guest. **

**And remember new outfit sets get added to Polyvore with almost every chapter. So if you're ever curious as to what Callie's wearing, you can always take a look. Again, my username is MeganSueann. **

* * *

To say that I hadn't been checking my mailbox everyday for a letter would be a lie. To say that I was totally fine, and sane, and not hopelessly pining after him while looking sadly out a window would be a lie. To say that I didn't replay the moment that his lips first met mine over and over again in my head would be a lie. It had only been two weeks and I was a sad, lonely mess.

I worked as much as I could to stay busy and keep my mind off of him. I was exercising more, doing more things around town; for instance I went to Madam Tussaud's Wax Museum and the Natural History Museum. Alisha and I had hung out a lot more. Which included going to a lot more clubs, because that's where she spent most of her time these days. Wherever Reece was, a desperate Alisha wasn't far behind. Yet, I still hadn't talked to James. It seemed when he called, I was busy and couldn't answer. And when I finally got a chance to call him back, he wouldn't answer.

We stood outside Club XS, waiting to get in. Avicii was the guest DJ tonight, and Alisha was extremely excited about it. I called James, hoping that maybe this time I would actually get him. I was wrong.

"Is Reece coming tonight?" Madison asked Alisha.

"I don't know, he said he might show up later." She replied.

When Alisha invited me to go somewhere with her, I went for three reasons. One, because I was bored. Two, because I would feel bad if I said no. And three, because I felt like if I didn't keep an eye on her, no one would. Alisha was the poster child for depression, yet she wouldn't admit it, and no one else cared enough to pay enough attention to her to see it, but me. If I was really going all out, I'd say she was also a borderline alcoholic.

Reece breaking up with her really messed her up. And the fact that the loser was keeping her around for his amusement and sexual needs wasn't helping. I really hoped that he did show up later so that I could punch the piece of shit right in the face.

Colin pulled me out on the dance floor immediately when we finally got in.

"Why aren't you drinking!?" He yelled over the music.

"So that I can take care of your sister!" I replied.

"She's a big girl, she can handle herself!"

I seriously doubted that, though. Drinking at eight o'clock in the morning while she makes breakfast? Yeah, she was handling herself real well. I glanced towards the bar and caught a glimpse of her doing shots with Madison. All that I could think of was Alisha crying to me about how none of these people were her friends, yet here she was still getting them into clubs and still buying them drinks.

After a few songs, Colin and I joined them at the bar only to see Madison holding a small baggie of what looked like candy in her hand. She kept it low, making sure no one saw her with it. I knew immediately that whatever she had was illegal.

"Colin, here!" She said, taking one of the tablets and placing it the palm of his hand. I narrowed my eyes at him as he quickly popped it in his mouth and swallowed. "Callie, you want one?"

"What is it?" I asked.

"It's Molly, but _ssssssh_." Alisha slurred as she held a finger up to her lips.

"No, I'm okay." I replied, pushing Madison's hand away.

"Aw, come on, Cal!" Alisha begged. "Have fun with us!"

I shook my head, not wanting any part in it.

After about two hours of sitting at the bar by myself, I decided to go outside and try calling James again. I knew it would be late for him, but I really needed him. The phone rang seven times and went to voicemail. I sighed and leaned up against the brick wall. It was warm out, but when wasn't it? A nice breeze floated through the night air, and I welcomed it. I wanted to go home, but I couldn't until I made sure that Madison, Alisha, and Colin had gotten home okay.

My phone vibrated in my hand.

"Hi." I answered.

_"Hey."_ He sounded exhausted.

"I really miss your voice."

_"Maybe you should answer the phone when I call, then."_

"Like you're one to talk."

_"Not that you need a reason, but why are you calling me at two in the morning?" _James asked.

"It's only eleven here and I just needed to talk. It's been so long since we've had a real conversation that wasn't 'hey I'll call you back, I'm working'. You're my best friend. I've known you since we were in diapers. I feel weird if I don't talk to you everyday." I tried to keep my voice from cracking, but I missed James so much that sometimes I felt like moving back to Tennessee.

_"What's wrong, Cal?"_

"I'm lonely, I guess. I have nothing in common with any of these people."

_"What about your hot neighbor?" _He said lazily, and I could picture him shifting in his bed, getting more comfortable.

I tried to not smile. "Don't even get me started."

_"Oh, so there _has_ been a development?"_

"That's the understatement of the year." I mumbled._  
_

James gasped. _"Did you sleep with him!? Callie, did you finally lose your virginity!?"_

"No! I didn't sleep wi-" I was cut off by a man around the corner yelling, followed by a woman. They were having an argument. A very loud argument. "I didn't sleep with him." I said, slowly walking towards where the voices were coming from.

As I got closer, I realized that it wasn't just a random woman yelling. It was Alisha.

"J, I'm sorry but I got to go. I'll call you tomorrow."

Before he could say anything, I hung up the phone and peaked around the corner to see Alisha and Reece in the alleyway. He had her pinned up against the wall, forcing kisses down her neck as she tried to get him off.

"Hey!" I yelled as I stepped from around the corner. Reece immediately stopped what he was doing and turned to me, a dark smile forming on his face. "Don't touch her." I said, nervous now, hoping that I hadn't bitten off more than I could chew.

"Oh yeah, what are you going to do?" He said to me, taking a step forward as he yanked Alisha along with him.

"I've already called the cops." I was in heels, there was no where I could run, and I couldn't leave Alisha now.

I stood my ground as he got closer and closer, dragging Alisha behind him. Reece wasn't that much taller than me like Dean and Colin were. I wouldn't have to stand on my toes to sock him in the jaw. He stood as close as he could get and looked down at me. His eyes were almost black.

"Why don't you join us?"

"Reece, stop." Alisha begged.

He glanced over at her for only a second, but it was all the distraction I needed to coil up my fist and hit him square in the nose. I heard something crack, but I wasn't sure if it was his nose or one of my fingers. Or both. Blood immediately poured from his face as he doubled over in pain. I grabbed Alisha and pulled her away from him immediately, even though she was trying to find out of he was okay.

"You fuckin' bitch!" He yelled.

As soon as we got back in sight of the club, and people, Alisha yanked her arm from my grip.

"What the fuck are you doing?" She asked.

I was confused. "What?"

"Next time, mind your own business, Callie." She hissed.

"Lish, I was just trying to help."

"Aw, sweet Callie was only trying to help. Get off your fucking white horse already, alright?" She stomped back around the corner to where I had left Reece.

I was completely shocked. I thought that I was helping her. Wasn't she trying to get away from him? Wasn't she begging him to stop? I stood near the entrance of the club alone, wondering what in the hell was going on. Do I go after her? Do I go back inside?

_Why should I? So that I can sit at the bar by myself while they pop Molly and do shots?_

Without another thought, I stuck my arm up in the air, as a taxi drove towards me. I gave him my address and slid in the backseat. A tear fell down my cheek as we left the bright lights of the Vegas strip behind. The driver tried to ask me what was wrong, but I stayed silent. I knew it wasn't true, but I felt like I had lost my only friend. Alisha and I had grown close over the last few months, even though she was annoying as hell. I still appreciated her friendship and the fact that she never left me alone. She had pulled me away from my comfort zone in so many ways, and I was thankful for that.

I needed to find a way to fix this, but I had no idea where to start.

When I got home, I checked the mail and took off my heels. My toes cracked as I walked to my bedroom. I sat at the edge of my bed, rubbing both my feet, trying to sooth the soreness from wearing heels. I thumbed through the few catalogs that came in the mail, and tossed the bills aside for later, and came to what I had been waiting for for two weeks.

A postcard from Pennsylvania.

I knew exactly who it was from, without even reading the two words that were scribbled on the back.

_"One month." _

If he was reminding me that he would be back in a month, there was no need, I was already counting down the days. I rolled over to the other side of the bed and pulled open the drawer on my nightstand. To say that I hadn't been keeping the notes Dean had left me would be a lie. I had both of them stashed away under my bible in my bedside table. I slid the postcard in with the others and smiled to myself.

I was probably way in over my head, but I didn't care. I couldn't wait for him to get back.

* * *

**A little heads up for the next chapter, it doesn't fit in with the current WWE storyline.  
**

**But whoa! Alisha, what are you doing? What's going on with you, girl!?**

**1\. Sweet Dreams (Gregori Klosman Remix) - Avicii**

**2\. Levels (Radio Edit) - Avicii**

**3\. Addicted To You - Avicii**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged.**


	14. Go Slow

**Author's Note:**

**Holy smokes! Paradise City has passed 100 reviews!? I'm flattered. I mean, I honestly can't thank you all enough. You're truly all amazing and you don't know how much inspiration you guys give me. I love you all so much; nattiebroskette, xSamiliciousx, UntilNeverDawns, 00redsvt, Sinistergateslegend, lookitsria, Rossi's Lil Devil, turningthepaige, Mandamirra10, ph0biafied, nmoxracha, and Damnitambrose. **

**I want to give a shout out to AliceJericho for writing an amazing story Enter The Fray. If you haven't read it yet, please, go do that. Support her. She's great.**

**Anyways, if this update totally sucks it's because I'm exhausted. #excuses**

* * *

_"Hey." _

_"I really don't want to talk right now, Dad." _

_"Do you mind if I turn on the light?" He asked, completely ignoring me. _

_Without waiting for me to answer, he turned on the light, illuminating my room. He took one look around and let out a low whistle, and then he chuckled. I reached over to the small stereo on my nightstand and pressed pause. I'd have to wait until he left to go back to lip-syncing Britney. _

_"You're really taking this break up hard, huh?" __He was laughing at me. I knew that he thought this whole thing was funny, but it wasn't. My heart was broken. "You save any of those for me?" _

_He said, pointing to the box of Fudge Rounds that laid next to my bed on the floor. I reached into the box and pulled out the last one, tossing it at him._

_"Come on. Get up, Cal. Just because something sad happens doesn't mean you put your whole life on hold. You're sixteen, you have your whole life ahead of you. There'll be plenty of boys. And they will be better and make you happier than that little punk Jared."_

_"But I love him." I cried._

_He let out a bark of laughter. "Callie Beth Jordan, you don't know what love is. But you will, and that's the point. You'll find it someday. It could be tomorrow, it could be in a year, or when you're forty. The secret is that it will come to you when _you're _ready. Not when some sixteen year old boy wants you to be ready."_

_I sighed. I hated it when he actually made sense. _

_"Say, I got a couple Hershey bars. You wanna go make s'mores in the fireplace?" _

_A small smile tugged at my lips. He held out his hand and I took it, allowing him to pull me up from my cocoon of blankets. When I got to my feet I wrapped my arms tight around his abdomen. _

_"I love you, Dad."_

_He smiled down at me and kissed the top of my head. "I love you too, kiddo."_

A slight knock pulled me awake. I must have fallen asleep on the couch. Late night, black and white re-runs of 'I Love Lucy' were playing on the television. And there were empty bags of chips and pudding containers scattered about.

Another knock.

I checked my phone quickly to see what time it was; just past midnight. Who would be at my door at midnight? It had to be Alisha. But then again, I hadn't talked to her for days. I had tried calling her, but she sent me straight to voicemail every time. Even Madison was avoiding me at work, and Colin wasn't texting me back.

I peeked through the door to see a man in the hallway wearing a black leather jacket, and holding a pizza box up so that I couldn't see his face. _That's weird, _I thought to myself. _I didn't order pizza._

"I'm sorry, sir. You must have the wrong address. I didn't order anything." I said through the door.

_"Are you sure?" _

Immediately, I froze. I knew that voice. That unmistakable, low and husky voice that I had been so desperate to hear for the past three weeks. I threw open the door and threw myself at Dean, wrapping my arms tightly around his middle.

"I take it you missed me?" He asked with that signature smirk.

"Ew, no." I replied, shoving myself off of him. "I was hugging you because you brought me food."

I took the pizza box from his grip and turned around, however, I noticed something I had completely forgot about. The place was a mess! I threw the pizza on the counter and quickly gathered up as much clutter as I could carry and disposed of it in the kitchen trashcan. I straightened the cushions on the couch, and wiped down the coffee table, all while Dean stood awkwardly in the middle of the living room.

His eyebrows were raised. "Calm down, Mr. Clean, don't feel like you need to straighten up on my account."

"What are you even doing here?"

He dropped himself down on the couch and kicked off his shoes. "I fucked up my shoulder."

I moved his feet off of the couch and placed them on the coffee table instead, and sat cross-legged next to him. Underneath his jacket, I could see the white bandage that wrapped around his chest. "Well, that's what you get when you go out there every night and act like a raging lunatic."

He glared at me.

"I mean, you poor thing! You want me to kiss it all better?"

"Nah, I can't over exert myself with _strenuous activities_." He replied as his index finger innocently traced a line down my calf to my ankle.

I rolled my eyes, catching his innuendo. "About that, I think there's something we should discuss." I said, trying to ignore the goosebumps that were forming on my arms.

He eyed me suspiciously. "Go ahead?"

"I don't know what this is," I said motioning between the two of us. "I don't know what happened that night before you left." _Where am I going with this?_ "I mean, I've never done this kind of thing before." _Please, take the hint without me actually having to say it._ "I'm definitely attracted to you, sexually." I cleared my throat, trying to swallow the huge lump that had formed in it. How exactly do I say this without making him run for the hills?

"But?" He prodded me to continue.

"But, I'm a virgin." I replied under my breath.

He didn't say anything.

"I just don't want to rush into anything."

He still didn't say anything.

"Or get hurt."

Not a word.

"I mean, I don't have any huge expectations on my 'first time' or anything, but I'd like for it to be special."

Still nothing.

"Goddammit, Dean. Can you say something?"

"Did you think that it would matter to me?" He finally asked after a few more seconds of silence. "I mean, did you really think that I was that much of an asshole that I wouldn't like you anymore because you've never had sex with anyone?"

"No. Yes. I don't know. I'm insecure about it. I'm twenty-two years old and I'm still a virgin. People think that's weird; especially guys. Especially experienced guys. Like I'm not womanly enough or something. They look at me like a little kid."

"Trust me, Callie, you're not a little kid." He paused. "You act like one sometimes, but..." His eyes trailed down my figure, I caught on and a blush rose to my cheeks. "And who cares what people think anyways? A lot of people just have sex because it feels good, they don't really care if it's with someone they hate or someone they love. You're waiting for someone you care about and that's admirable. Fucking someone or not fucking someone doesn't make you cool or more mature. It's really personal, and it can be terrifying. Some people just aren't ready, yet. You don't have to be afraid of me, though. I'm not perfect, but I'd try to not hurt you."

I wasn't exactly sure what to say after that. I had honestly thought that he would laugh, and make fun of me, and get up and leave. He was this older, more experienced guy and that scared the crap out of me. I knew first hand, because I had heard it through my bedroom wall. He knew what he was doing. He had probably slept with countless women. How was I going to make myself matter to him? This was probably all just another game to him.

One that I had just probably made a lot more fun to play.

Even after what he had just said. How did I know I could believe him?

"What are you thinking?" He asked.

I shrugged. "I was thinking you should probably ice that shoulder."

He chuckled. "I'm going to be out for a few months, you can play nurse some other time. Right now, you come here."

Dean opened his arms, inviting me in. I wrapped myself around his middle, and placed my face in the crook of his neck, breathing in the smell of his skin. I didn't want to move. I probably could have stayed like this for the rest of my life and been completely happy. He was so big, and so warm, and soft.

I felt him shift underneath me.

"Am I hurting you?" I asked, remembering his shoulder.

"Not at all." He replied. "Just trying to get more comfortable."

I then felt the reason for his sudden shift poking into my hip and blushed wildly.

"Dean!" I whined.

"What?! I can't help it."

I rolled off of the couch, deciding to go get that ice anyways.

"That was a nice moment and you totally ruined it with your creepy, perv ways."

"Creepy Perv, she says." He mocked me. "Yet she kisses me? That makes a lot of sense."

"Are you talking to yourself?" I asked from the kitchen. "I thought the crazy thing was just an act?"

I walked back into the living room and stood over him. He smiled up at me innocently, as I held the cold bag of ice in my hand.

"Take off your jacket." I told him. He sighed, pulling his large arms out of the sleeves. His shoulder was compressed in bandage, but you could tell it was swollen. "What did you even do to it?"

"It's a minor tear, no surgery required. I'm just not allowed to wre- fuck that's cold! God damn, woman!" I laughed. "I'm not allowed to wrestle until it's healed because it could go from minor to major very easily." His voice said that he was fine, but his face said that he was a little scared.

"I'm sorry." I said softly, bending over the back of the couch to give him a peck on the lips.

I lingered there for a moment just relishing in the feeling of his lips. I don't think I'll ever get used to that.

"At least I have you to take care of me, otherwise I'd be pissy about it." He gave me a lazy smile as I pulled away and reapplied the ice to his shoulder, he winced and I giggled again. "But right now, if I wasn't so injured, I'd get up and kick your ass."

"Are you sure it's because you're injured or are you just a pussy?"

He pulled the pillow out from underneath him and launched it at me, but I ducked quickly out of the way.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" He yelled, but I knew better. "My poor shoulder, ow!"

"Stop faking, you lazy bum!" I scolded. "I'm gonna call your boss and tell him that you're fine and beg him to come pick you up so that you wont be here annoying me for however long."

"Aw you don't want me around?" He stood up off the couch.

"I thought we already established that you're an annoying jerk?"

He laughed. "Okay, fine. I'll just go to my apartment then, see ya."

Dean grabbed his suitcases and headed for the door. He turned to look at me one last time, his hand on the door handle for added effect, not to mention the big pout on his lips and droopy eyes.

"Have fun over there!" I called as I fell backwards on the couch and flipped the TV back on.

With an exasperated sigh, Dean threw the door open and left. I didn't really think he would, and I was a little disappointed that he didn't put up much more of a fight. But, he needed his rest if his shoulder was going to get any better.

A yawn escaped my lips, and I realized how tired I was. I shut off the television and all the lights in the front room, and made my way back to bed. I laid there for a minute with my arm under my head, unable to erase the man that was just on the other side of that wall out of my mind for even a second.

I could only hope that he was having the same problem.

* * *

**Wow, they totally just left that pizza sitting there. Didn't even eat it. Rude. Anyways, things are definitely getting better between them.**

**Sorry for taking so long to get this up, I've been feeling a little down. And sorry it sucks so bad. Like, wow. I am really sorry about that. **

**Also, it _might_ be a little while before I update this one because I'll be working on a couple Halloween themed one-shots. Maybe. I might update this one in a few hours. I don't know. I don't know what I'm doing from one minute to the next, it seems. **

**Hope you'll forgive me, and I hope you liked it. **

**1\. Go Slow - Haim**

**2\. Just A Game - Birdy**

**3\. Honey &amp; I - Haim**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged :)**


	15. Careful

**Surprise! An update!**

**Sixteen reviews!? Could you flatter me any more? Geez! I love all of you; nattiebroskette, fearloathingky, Sinistergateslegend, dreamin'BIG, CFair-Valentine, nmoxracha, Mandamirra10, 00redsvt, xSamiliciousx, Rossi's Lil Devil, UntilNeverDawns, turningthepaige, ThatGirl54, Damnitambrose, Tootertoad85, and Khaaaaaaan (and thank you for reviewing Sempiternal). Thank you for your outstanding support. You guys mean the world to me.**

* * *

"What do you want to do today?"

Dean had been home for a week. Most of that week was spent on the couch, watching movies and making out.

He looked up at me. His head was resting in my lap, and I had been running my fingers through his hair. I was enjoying this. If this was how everyday was going to be with him, count me in. Lazy Sunday afternoons were my forte. However, I was starting to become a little antsy. I needed to stretch my legs.

"It's a beautiful day." I continued. "And I kind of wanted to know if you wanted to go to the Grand Canyon with me?"

He sat up. "Are you asking me out on a date?"

"Well, I've never been. And I thought it would be nice to actually go out somewhere together."

"People don't just ask people to go to the Grand Canyon with them. You're asking me out on a date! That's so cute." He teased.

I rolled my eyes.

"It's a bit of a drive." He said flatly.

I pouted my lips.

"Yeah, let's go." He sighed.

"Yes!" I jumped from the couch like a kid on Christmas.

I had been wanting to go to the Grand Canyon since I was a kid, but when I moved to Vegas, I was either sidetracked or just too lazy to go. I threw open my closet and grabbed a t-shirt, shorts, and sandals, before pulling my hair up in a loose ponytail.

We had been holed up in the apartment for a week, only going out to get takeout. I was starting to think that he didn't want to be seen in public with me.

Because I didn't know what was going on between the two of us. Dean was the neighbor that I hated, and then he turned into that neighbor I tolerated, and then we made out. Was I his girlfriend? It really didn't matter to me, because he was gone 300 days out of the year, anyways. There was no time for a relationship there, right? Movies and books and television shows made long distance relationships look like they never worked out, and well I wasn't in this business to get my heart broken.

I still wasn't sure where he was in all of this. Hell, he could be using me. But then, for what? It's not like I was having sex with him.

There were moments that I felt like there was really something there, though. Like when the pad of his thumb would trace over my bottom lip right before he was about to kiss me. Or the way we held hands as he drove. I tried not to think about it too much, because when I did, I started thinking that maybe I was just his hometown girl. He could have one of me in every state.

"Tell me something about you." He asked, but kept his eyes on the road.

"Like what?" I asked him.

"Anything, there's still a lot I don't know about you."

He was right. Most of our conversations were about him, not because he liked to talk about himself, but because I liked listening to him gush about his life. He always rambled on when he was talking about something that he was passionate about, and I couldn't get enough of it. He could talk endlessly, and I would listen to all of it.

"Well, my birthday is next week." I shrugged.

That was important, right? When getting to know someone, someone that you're interested in on another level other than friendship, you should know when their birthday is, right? I never really cared for birthdays, simply because I'd forget my own if my parents didn't obnoxiously wake me up every year with breakfast in bed and sit with me as they watched me eat. The only reason that I remembered it this year was because when I woke up and switched my calendar over to July, I noticed that the eleventh had a big balloon drawn in the box, accompanied with the words _"Happy birthday, baby girl"_ in my mother's handwriting.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

I shrugged again. "I forgot. I don't really like birthdays anyways."

I didn't want to talk about it. This would be the first birthday I would be spending without my parents.

"Come on, everyone likes birthdays!" He said. "You should invite your family to Vegas. That'd be cool."

Dean still didn't know that my parents were dead. I avoided the subject because I didn't want him to look at me with that look that every got when they found out that my parents had died. I knew I would have to tell him sooner or later, but that wasn't something I really wanted to talk about with anyone.

"Maybe." I replied softly and returned my gaze to the window.

The road to the Canyon felt like a long one. Just a single highway that cut through the jagged desert. We decided on the western part of the Canyon. It wouldn't be as spectacular as where all the tourists went, but Dean promised it would still be beautiful. We rode mostly in silence. Dean would sometimes hum along with a song on the radio, and I was too stuck in my own head.

We arrived right at sunset. To say that it was the most breathtaking thing I had ever seen would be an understatement. The way that the orange rocks contrasted with the red and pinks of the sky was marvelous.

"It's beautiful, right?" Dean asked me as he held me from behind.

"There are no words." I replied.

I could see the larger mountains on the horizon up against the purple sky. My eyes weren't wide enough to take in everything all in one look. There was so much to see. So many colors and patterns. It was amazing how small I felt standing at the edge of one of the greatest spectacles on Earth.

"Be careful!" Dean jolted us forward, as if he was going to send me over the edge. He barked with laughter.

"Dean!" I yelled. "That's not funny."

"Are you afraid of heights?"

"No, but I don't want to die by falling off this cliff because you're being an asshole again."

"That would be so tragic." He replied. "WWE Superstar Dean Ambrose pushes friend off cliff. Sentenced to life in prison."

I laughed.

"Hey," He said softly. "I have a surprise for you."

I eyed him as he led me to the back of his S.U.V and opened the trunk. There was blankets and pillows and red wine, and this all seemed a little too romantic.

"Dean, I'm not having sex with you in the back of your car."

He sighed.

"I thought you weren't going to pressure me!" I shoved him lightly away from me, a little disappointed that he would do this.

"I'm not! But it's your first time at the Grand Canyon, you're here with me, the sun is setting." I wasn't buying it. "Come on! You can't blame a guy for trying!"

I crossed my arms over my chest. "I'll be ready when I'm ready."

Dean took a step towards me and uncrossed my arms, wrapping them around himself. "I'm sorry." He kissed my cheek. "I really am. I promise not to pressure you anymore." He held up the Scout's Honor.

We laid in the back of his truck, watching the moon rise and uncover all of the stars. We talked about everything from our favorite color to religion. I told him about James, and how much I missed him. He told me about his two best friends, Seth and Roman. He said they would like me, and I told him how James already did like him. Even though I had been adamant that nothing was going on between us. He thought that was funny.

He hated spiders and snakes, while I was claustrophobic and didn't like clowns.

"I need to tell you something." I chewed on my lip, not knowing how to approach the topic I had been so unwilling to discuss.

"What is it?" He asked, pulling me closer to him.

"The reason I'm not really thrilled about my birthday is because it's the first birthday I'll be spending without my family."

"That's why I suggested you invite them. It'd be cool to meet 'em."

"No, uh-" I was struggling. I didn't want to say it. "My parents uh, they um- they passed away."

Dean was immediate quiet. I think he might have even stopped breathing for a moment.

I looked up at him. There was that look, the one that I hated so much. Pity. It was all over his face. His blue eyes were dripping with it. I sighed and sat up, scooting myself out of the back of his truck. The desert air was cool. I had forgotten 'hot days, cold nights', and was only wearing a tank top and pair of shorts. I shivered as I looked out over the rocks.

This was why I hated talking about it. When I say those words, 'my parents died', the person goes quiet. They don't know what to say next. And usually, if they do say something, it's 'I'm sorry'. Like it's their fault or something.

I could hear the rocks crackling underneath Dean's shoes as he came up behind me. He wrapped a blanket around my shoulders.

"Callie-"

"Don't say it."

He sighed, knowing exactly what I was talking about. "I didn't mean to bring it up."

"I brought it up. I wanted you to know."

"Is that why you moved to Vegas?"

I nodded. "I couldn't handle it, you know? It hurt too much." I was crying now, much more than I expected to.

I had been holding this back since the funeral. Telling myself that crying was a weakness, and that they wouldn't want me to cry over them. My parents were always so tough, I never saw either of them cry. They took life by the horns and if it didn't work out the way they wanted, they got up and moved on. I could never do that. In fact, I was the complete opposite. I broke down immediately. I cried at every little thing.

And then when they died, that part of me shriveled up and died with them.

I became cold and calloused.

Dean held me to him, letting me cry. "Ssh, it's okay."

When it felt like I had cried every tear I had to cry, Dean strapped me into the passenger seat, and we began the long drive back home. I thanked him. Not only for not being like the countless other people who apologized to me for my parent's death, but for getting rid of that awful pity in his eyes. And I asked him that it not be brought up anymore, to which he agreed.

I must have fallen asleep on the way, because when I woke up, we were in the parking garage of the apartment.

"Hey, we're home." She said softly, kissing me gently on the forehead.

I trudged behind him to the elevator, wiping the sleep from my eyes. It was almost three in the morning, and I was exhausted.

"I just want to go straight to bed." I groaned as the elevator popped open.

"Well we can do that."

"You say that like you're going to stay the night wit-" I stopped halfway down the hallway.

Something was wrong.

"I know I shut my door when I left." I said as I noticed that the door to my apartment was wide open.

Dean went a head of me, in case there was a burglar lurking inside. It was completely dark. Every light was off. I couldn't see anything two feet past the door. _Something is wrong here, _I kept telling myself over and over.

"Hello?" Dean yelled.

"Turn on the light, please." I asked him.

He ran his hand along the wall until he found the light switch. My stomach dropped as my eyes adjusted to see that my apartment was completely torn apart. Everything was broken; the TV, the pictures that hung on the wall. I cautiously stepped over the broken glass to the corner of the room where my dad's record player had been. It now laid on the floor in pieces. His records were thrown all over the room.

All the plates and glasses in the kitchen had been taken out of the cupboards and thrown onto the floor.

The mirrors in both bathrooms had been broken.

My bedroom was completely overturned. The mattress was on the opposite side of the room, my nightstand had been thrown over, and my clothes were everywhere; cut up and ripped. And spray painted on the wall in big, red letters was the word 'bitch'.

Dean was on the phone with the cops.

I just sat in the middle of my room, looking around at the wreckage. This was personal. This person knew what they were doing, and what would hurt me the most if they destroyed it. They knew what belonged to my parents. They did this on purpose. This wasn't some random break in, because nothing was missing.

I jumped up off the floor and threw my closet door open. _Please_, I prayed as I dug through the clothes before I found what I had been looking for. The large white box, inside was my mother's wedding dress. It looked seemingly untouched. _Please let it be okay._

My fingers slid underneath the sides of the boxes and lifted it up slowly. It was perfect. Just like it always had been. I sighed, thanking God that nothing had happened to it.

"What's that?" I heard Dean ask.

"My mother's wedding dress." I replied, running my fingers over the beads and lace.

"Is it okay?"

"Yes, thankfully." I closed the box and sat it back up on the top shelf.

"The police should be here any minute." He said. "They asked that we not to touch anything. Do you know who would have done this?"

I didn't know, but I had a pretty good idea.

* * *

**Will Callie ever catch a break? I mean seriously. **

**Who broke into her apartment? Any guesses?**

**1\. Don't Be Careful With Me - Meg &amp; Dia**

**2\. ****Delicate - Damien Rice**

**3\. Worried Shoes - Karen O**

**4\. Running Up That Hill - Placebo**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged**


	16. Complicated

**I really enjoyed reading all your reviews. I think it's safe to say we all hate Alisha and especially Reece. Question, do you guys think there could be any hope for Alisha?**

**Thanks to nattiebroskette (for always being the first to review), ThatGirl54, Mandamirra10, Rossi's Lil Devil, xSamiliciousx, 00redsvt, UntilNeverDawns, Khaaaaaaan, turningthepaige, Damnitambrose, and Sinistergateslegend.**

**Hey, don't be scared to leave long reviews. Long reviews are what I live for. Just thought I'd say that in case some of you were shying away from doing that. It's totally acceptable. **

* * *

There was caution tape everywhere.

I wasn't allowed to touch anything, but all I wanted to do was clean everything up. It felt so wrong to stand there in the middle of it all and not be able to do anything. It felt wrong to just stare at my dad's broken record player on the floor, and not try to fix it. Everything just felt wrong.

"Ms. Jordan?" After the cop had asked Dean a few questions, he pulled me aside. "This kind of break in seems very personal, do you have any enemies?"

"Um, none that I can think of." I lied.

There was Alisha and her disgusting vermin of a boyfriend, Reece. There was no forced entry. Either the person who did this had expert lock-picking skills, or had a key to the apartment. I was going to guess the latter.

"Callie!"

_Speak of the devil._

Alisha busted through the door and men in uniform, surveying the damage. The look of shock on her face was fake, forced, and not fooling anyone. Especially me. "Oh my God! What happened!? Are you okay? Who did this?"

"Excuse me ma'am, who are you?" The cop asked.

"I'm her landlord. I own the building."

One of the officers took her away for questioning. I could see the tiny smirk on her face and she watched me. It took everything in me not to pick up a piece of this broken glass and hurl it at her fake blonde head.

"Ms. Jordan, if you know or have any idea who did this, we ask you to please speak up. You might be scared, but I promise we won't let anything happen to you."

"Thank you, Officer. I'll think about it. I really just want to get this cleaned up and go to bed."

He nodded. "We'll be in touch."

In a matter of minutes, the investigative team had cleared the room. All that was left was me and yellow tape hanging from every corner. Dean stood cautiously by the door as if someone was going to break in again.

My hands shook as I began picking up pieces of the record player. The wood floor had been dented where someone had thrown it down hard. There was no way this was going to get fixed.

"This was my dad's." My voice cracked as I spoke. "It belonged to his dad. Grandpa had given it to him as a housewarming present when my parents moved to Tennessee."

I placed it back on the desk, trying to keep all of the little pieces together.

"Come on, Callie. You've got to be exhausted." Dean whispered to me.

"I have to get this cleaned up. I can't just leave it like this." I cried.

"Yes, you can. We can work on this tomorrow." He replied.

I knew he was just trying to help, but I didn't want it. I wanted to be alone.

"I have to work tomorrow."

"Take the night off."

"I can't." That wasn't a lie. I had already taken too many days off so that I could spend time with him. He didn't know that, though. I told him that we had just been over-staffed and they didn't need me.

"Callie, please. You can sleep in my bed. I'll sleep on the couch. We can fix all of this tomorrow. Please, let's just go to bed."

With one more look around the apartment, I sighed and gave up. Dean mumbled a small 'thank you', and took my hand, leading me out into the hallway and to his apartment. His apartment was untouched. Still empty and pristine. Like it hadn't been lived in for months. It made me sad to see.

If it was Alisha, what was I going to do about it? Alisha owned the entire building. She was my landlord. She had my name on a contract; binding me to that flat for a year's time. What if it was Reece? Still, nothing I could do about it. If Reece was arrested, Alisha would do nothing but make my life a living hell. She could have me evicted. She could throw a cinder block through the windshield of my car, next. Who knows? She was proving to be a completely different person than the sweet, small town girl from Alaska that I had met when I first moved here.

Do I move out? Find someone to pick up the rest of my lease? What about Dean? What if she started taking things out on him? That only scratched the surface of how complicated this really was. I'm sure I could think of a million more reasons why Alisha was not the person to mess with. One of them being that her 'best friend' was my coworker.

Dean sat at the edge of his bed as I quickly changed into a t-shirt of his. I noticed that he didn't look, and smiled to myself.

"Callie." He said softly, reaching for my hand. I took it, allowing him to pull me onto his lap. "Do you know who broke in to your apartment?"

I sighed. I hadn't filled Dean in on anything that happened between Alisha and I while he was gone. But since I was being honest with him today, since I had already come clean about my parents, I might as well just tell him about the Alisha problem.

"Yeah, I do." He looked surprised. "Well, not for sure. But I'm almost certain that Alisha was behind it."

"Alisha? As in our landlord? Alisha Davis?" I nodded. "Why?"

"She's turned into a different person. Fun, bubbly Alisha has turned into a monster. I haven't talked to her in a few weeks, but ever since Reece broke up with her she had been drinking constantly, and doing drugs, and Reece was hitting her up for sex. And now they're back together? The last time I went out with them I was outside of the club talking to James and I heard some arguing. I went to investigate and saw Reece trying to- you know, force himself on to Alisha. I got in the middle of it, and he threatened me, and well... I kind of- I uh, I punched him in the face."

Dean's lips formed a hard line like he was trying to hold back a smile.

"It's not funny. I was genuinely scared for my life."

"So you think that Alisha had Reece ransack your house?"

I nodded. "I knew it when I saw that the wedding dress was okay. Alisha didn't know that it was in my closet, so she wouldn't have been able to tell Reece about it. Everything else of my parent's was destroyed; my dad's records and the TV. She knew those things mattered to me because I told her. But she didn't know about that dress."

"That makes sense." He picked me up and laid me down in his bed and pulled the covers back, tucking me in. "We'll figure out what to do about it in the morning. Right now, you sleep."

He turned to leave, but I caught his hand.

"Stay with me, please?"

His eyes were soft as he smiled. "Of course."

"Don't get any ideas, I just don't want to be alone." I added.

A genuine smile spread across his face as he climbed into bed behind me. "Ideas? What? I would never!" He pulled the covers back over us, wrapped his large arms around me, and kissed my shoulder.

"Sweet dreams."

* * *

**I wasn't going to update today. But I figured a sweet, little one would be no harm.**

**There's more foreshadowing in here. Anyone want to guess what it is?**

**1\. Civilian - Wye Oak**

**2\. I Can Barely Say - The Fray**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged.**


	17. Mean Girls

**I'm on a roll tonight. Sorry if I'm updating too fast for you. The ideas are really blooming in my mind, and I want you guys to get them before I go back to Robot Megan again and start forcing out updates that suck.**

**Anywho! I'd like to thank Sinistergateslegend, xSamiliciousx, Khaaaaaaan, and nattiebroskette for reviewing. You're the bestest. **

**If you guessed things were only going to get worse before they got better, you were right. **(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻

* * *

Dean was gone in the morning.

His side of the bed seemed like it hadn't been slept in at all, as opposed to my side, where the sheets and comforter were completely a mess. I frowned. It was probably for the best. Awkward morning-afters weren't exactly my thing, and probably not his either.

I stared at my reflection in his bathroom mirror. There were grey bags under my eyes, my eyes were puffy. It had been a very long twenty-four hours, and barely sleeping didn't help. I probably wouldn't have slept at all if Dean wasn't there.

_Remind me to thank him for that when he gets back, _I thought to myself.

Though, when I reached the living room, I noticed that he hadn't gone anywhere. He was fast asleep on the couch, cuddling a baseball bat.

I had to hold back a giggle as I tiptoed over to him. I knelt down beside him, softly brushing a few stray hairs from his face. He was adorable when he slept; mouth hanging slightly open, breathing peaceful breaths.

"Dean," I whispered.

He stirred slightly, eyes fluttering open to meet mine. "Hey."

"Did you sleep out here?"

"I had to make sure no one tried to mess with you."

"Is that what this is for?" I asked as I motioned towards his Louisville Slugger.

"Well I didn't have a steel chair..." He trailed off and I shook my head. "Have you been over there, yet?"

Right. My apartment was still a disaster. He was almost enough to make me forget about that. It would have to wait til tonight, because I had to work. And I needed the money tonight if I was going to get everything fixed. Lord knows Alisha probably wasn't going to do anything to help.

I shook my head and sighed. "I need to, I have to find my work uniform. If it's still intact."

"I'll come with you."

It was worse with the sun shining through the windows. The blinds and curtains had been ripped off the walls. The light hit the broken glass on the floor, shooting multi-colored reflections at the walls. The bright red spray paint on my bedroom wall really churned my stomach though.

_Bitch._

What had I done? Tried to help a friend? I should have known better than to trust someone so quickly. All she had to do was call me her friend and I was putty in her hands instantly. I should have known not to buy in to her crap so easily. How could I be so stupid?

With Dean's help, I moved my mattress over to the bed frame, and started shifting through my clothes. The straps to many of my tank tops had been cut. Mostly every pair of jeans I owned had been cut in half, and not in the way where you could possibly make shorts out of them. I mean they were cut in half. On leg was separated from the other. The dress that I had worn the night Dean and I danced together at the club had been completely ruined.

There were two piles. 'Destroyed' and 'not as destroyed'.

I managed to find my work pants, which were thankfully still perfectly fine, and a dressy black top that wasn't what I usually wore, but it would have to do.

The bathroom was destroyed. My immaculate glass shower that I adored so much was shattered. Glass was everywhere. It cracked under my feet as I walked over it, Dean holding my hand of course. I threw my soap, shampoo, conditioner, and loofa in a plastic bag. Then shuffled through my counter drawers for my make up bag.

"I hope you don't mind if I shower at your place?" I asked Dean.

"Not at all. In fact, I'd prefer if you stayed with me for a few days." I eyed him. "At least until this blows over and we know Alisha and whatever the fuck her boyfriend's name is aren't going to come back here." He added quickly.

Staying with him? As in living with him for a _few days_?

He caught on to my hesitation. "This place is a mess. You can't stay here."

I hated how easily he could talk me into something. "Okay."

Dean was right after all. There was broken glass everywhere. I could get hurt. I had no choice but to stay with him, right?

After I got out of the shower, and got myself ready for work, I walked across the hallway to see Dean picking up in my apartment. I leaned up against the door frame just watching him. He was really doing so much to help me.

"All you need now is a French maid outfit." I joked.

He faked a laugh. "You'd like that wouldn't you?"

I bit my lip as he sat the broom down and took a few steps toward me. He hooked his fingers in my belt loops. "Maybe."

"Is that what I have to do then? Roleplay as a French maid? I can do that, you know? There's a sex shop right down the street."

"Shhh, don't talk." I said softly, pulling him down to meet my lips. "Thank you for everything you've done for me."

He pulled away slowly. I was drowning in those dark blue eyes. "You don't need to thank me, Callie."

"Yes, I do. I really appreciate it. I probably wouldn't have been able to handle all of this, but you helped me. And you're still helping me. Thank you."

He touched our foreheads together and smiled. "You smell really good."

"Don't ruin this moment with your creepiness." I pushed him away, grabbing my car keys.

"Have a great night at work, dear." He smiled.

As soon as I got to work, Madison was giving me the cold shoulder and a nasty side-eye. It was really awesome because she was the hostess, so she was purposefully not seating me. Roger was too busy behind the line for me to talk to him about what had been going on. But then again, I was never the type of girl to run and cry to the boss.

After the fourth rotation of Madison skipping me, I marched right up to the redhead; she was flirting with the bus-boy, again.

"Beat it, Cody." I said to him. "She's never going to go out with you."

Madison scoffed, but Cody scampered away quickly.

"What the hell is your problem!?" She asked.

"What the hell is yours? Whatever you have against me because of Alisha, leave it at the damn door, Madison. We're at work. Let's not be childish. Stop skipping me. I know you're doing it on purpose."

She smirked. "I'm not skipping you on purpose, the costumers just don't want to sit in your section."

"Would you like me to keep you company as you sit the next table?" I asked.

She stayed quiet.

"I didn't think so. Stop skipping me, okay?" I flashed a fake smile and left it at that, disappearing back to the kitchen.

Throughout the rest of the night, Madison didn't skip me once. Good. It would have been a shame if someone went to the boss about her childish little games. I did well, making a decent amount of money. As I was cleaning the soda machines, I noticed Madison and my manager Chris talking. They were too far from me to hear what they were saying, but I was hoping he was scolding her about not seating me.

"Hey Callie, can I see you for a moment?" Chris asked me after I had grabbed my things and was ready to go.

"What's up, boss?" I asked him.

He opened the door to Roger's office, and asked me to have a seat. A lump formed in my throat. This was never good.

"Callie, earlier we had an envelope with over five hundred dollars in it go missing. It was money I had taken out of the drawer to put in the safe. I thought that I had misplaced it, however-" He cleared his throat. "An employee said that they saw you put an envelop in your purse. Now, usually we don't go off of hearsay, but this is a very serious matter."

"I wasn't even aware that the money was missing, sir." I told him.

My knees were shaking, and I know that he noticed. I tried to make them stop, he probably thought that I was nervous. Like I had just been caught. but I didn't do anything. I would never steal anything.

"We know that you've been through a lot in the past few days, and we totally understand why you would feel the need to take the money."

"Sir, I haven't taken anything." I said. "You can check my bag if you'd like."

"May we?" He asked.

I handed him my bag and crossed my arms. There was nothing in there.

This was completely ridiculous.

Chris pulled a fat, white envelope out of my bag and raised his eyebrows. I almost jumped out of my seat.

"Someone put that there!" My voice was raised.

This wasn't right. Someone was setting me up. First my apartment and now my job? What would be next? Dean actually really didn't like me, and he was doing all of this for shits and giggles because Alisha told him to do so?

"Callie, we have an eye witness saying that they saw you with the envelope." He replied.

"Who? Madison?!"

"We are not allowed to disclose any names."

"Of course you're not."

Roger, who had been silent the entire time, finally spoke up. "Look, Callie, I get it. Your apartment was broken into, all of your things were destroyed, you needed some fast cash to help you out. However, stealing money from any company is grounds for immediate termination. I'm sorry, Callie, but I have no other choice. You can keep what you made tonight, but I have to fire you."

My lips were trembling as I pulled them in between my teeth. All I could do was nod and accept that they weren't going to believe a word that I said.

"Well," I said. My voice broke. "I understand."

_Keep it together, Cal. Just keep it together._

I stood up, swung my bag back over my shoulder, and opened the door. Madison wasn't far, probably eavesdropping on the entire conversation I just had. She had a plastic smirk on her face, one that was begging to be slapped off.

_Keep it together!_

I was half expecting my tires to be slashed, or for my car to have a long key mark running down the side. I wouldn't put anything past these girls after what they had just done. When I got in my car, I locked the doors, and immediately broke down. I hit the steering wheel with my fists, the horn blared loudly.

"Fuck!" I yelled about sixteen times. When I was done with my tantrum, I pulled out my phone and dialed James, but he didn't answer. "What the fuck, James!" I screamed at his voicemail, even though I knew this wasn't his fault.

But I needed him.

When I got back to the apartment, Dean was still cleaning. He was scrubbing the giant, red 'BITCH' off the wall. His hands were stained red. I wondered how long he had been scrubbing, it was no where near gone, but it was faded significantly.

I dropped my keys on the dresser, letting him know I was there without saying anything.

"Callie?" He dropped the sponge back in the bucket. "What's wrong? What happened?"

That was all it took to break down in his arms, again. It was becoming a habit of mine. When all I wanted was to be strong, I just couldn't hold up the act anymore. I hated crying like this in front of him. It was so childish. Little, virgin Callie the Crybaby. No man wants to put up with this.

"What happened?" He asked again.

"I g-got f-fired." I managed to get out past the choking sobs.

"Why!?"

"Madison s-set me up. Sh-she made it l-look like I was trying to st-steal money f-from the restaurant."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Anger flashed in his eyes. He pulled out his cellphone, typing furiously away at the keyboard.

"What are you doing?" I wiped my eyes and nose.

"Calling Alisha. I'm getting this shit set straight right now. I don't care who I have to fuckin' fight. Bad shoulder and all, I will fuck up that posh prick of hers."

"Don't." I said, pushing his phone down. "Please, don't. I've had enough drama for the week. I don't need you fighting some douchebag and taking a chance on getting hurt. I'd never forgive myself."

"Callie, babe, this shit a'int gonna fly. You can't let them get away with this."

"I know that, and I will, just not tonight."

He dropped it for the rest of the night, and followed me back to his bedroom. I changed into one of his t-shirts, and fell asleep in his arms again. It was hard to stay asleep, waking up every few hours with the fear that someone was there in the room with us. Every time I woke up, Dean was still there, holding me tightly to his chest as if something might try and pull me away from him.

It was the long hours of the early morning that I hated the most. There was nothing for me to do but think.

What was I doing? Avoiding every problem that I had? Precisely. I had so many parts of me, all screaming at me to do something different. I could hear my dad saying that I needed to wipe the snot from my nose and face my fears. I could hear my mother telling me that I needed to tell the cops the truth, and have Alisha and whoever else she was in cahoots with locked up. I could hear Dean saying that I needed to get rid of this problem fist-to-face, and knock that fake tan right off of the bitch. And I could hear James saying that I needed to just move back home and be with my best friend.

My voice was no where to be found.

I had no idea what to do.

* * *

**Hey, so the next chapter is all about Dean and how fucking adorable and cute he can be. I'm so excited to write it, but it's going to have to wait til later because I have work in the morning *eyeroll***

**Did anyone see this coming?**

**1\. Where the Fence Is Low (Acoustic Version) - LIGHTS**

**2\. Tomorrow Is Gonna Be Better - Joshua Radin**

**4\. No Rest For The Wicked - Lykke Li**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged**


	18. Happy Birthday

**Dear Guest who came at me with the security camera review: All I have to say to you is I'm sorry about the lack of security cameras in this story. If you don't like it, I'm sure I can find you another story chock-full of security cameras.**

**EVERYONE LISTEN TO MANDAMIRRA10! Listen to the playlist while you read. I put the songs in order of the scenes that are happening. Of course, you don't have to listen, you don't have to do anything, but I'm only trying to make your reading experience better.**

**Moving on. **

**I just want you all to know I pulled an all-nighter writing this chapter, and only stopped for work, where I daydreamed about this chapter (and then came home and took a long nap). I am so proud of it, and I cried multiple times while writing it. I really, really hope you all enjoy it as much as I do. And if you met Dean at Ringside Fest today you're very lucky and I hate you. **

**Anyways. Thanks to the baes nattiebroskette, Sinistergateslegend, 00redsvt, Vividfairy20, UntilNeverDawns, Emzy2k11, xSamiliciousx, Rossi's Lil Devil, the Guest (so nice of you to stop by), honesteyez, ThatGirl54, Khaaaaaaan, Damnitambrose, turningthepaige, Mandamirra10, and ph0biafied. This one's for you guys, it's a long on. So prepare yourselves.**

* * *

_"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Callie! Happy birthday to you!" _

I smiled into the phone. "Thank you, James."

I said it as quietly as I could, Dean was still sleeping beside me.

A few days had turned into a week. I wasn't complaining. My apartment was being renovated. Turns out Alisha didn't 'own' the building, and she just worked for the man who did. After Dean and I made a few phone calls, Alisha had been fired, and my apartment was being completely redone.

Revenge. It felt so good.

_"Why are you being quiet? Who are you with?" _James asked.

"You're so perceptive, James." I whispered as I pulled the covers down and slowly crawled out of bed.

"Where are you going?" Dean asked, his voice was hoarse.

_"Who's that? Callie Beth! Who are you sleeping with?" _

"I'm not sleeping with anyone." I swatted Dean's hands away as he tried to pull me back into bed with him. There was no need in being quiet anymore, he was already awake. I jutted a stern finger in Dean's direction, signaling for him to behave himself while I was on the phone.

_"Who was that then?__" _James asked again.

I sighed as I pulled open Dean's refrigerator. "It was Dean."

_"Dean?"_ He gasped loudly. _"The irresistible, obnoxious neighbor?! It finally happened?!"_

"Nothing happened. My apartment is being renovated and he's letting me stay with him." I replied as I poured a bowl of cereal.

_"Letting you stay in his bed?"_

I hadn't told James about Alisha. There was no need in him worrying about me, and besides, the problem was fixed. When he asked about the screaming voicemail I left him, I simply told him that I was just mad that he didn't pick up his phone _again_. I didn't tell him about the breakdown I was having in my car in the parking garage of the MGM Grand Hotel.

"It's my birthday!" I said, trying to change the subject. I sat on the arm of Dean's couch as I munched on my bowl Honey Bunches of Oats.

_"What do you want?" _He asked.

"For you to stop badgering me about my neighbor, and for you get on a plane and come see me! I miss you."

_"I think I'll pass. I don't think there's enough room for both of us in that bed. And I wouldn't want you to get jealous." _

"You're disgusting. I'm hanging up."

As I pulled the phone away from my ear, I could hear James laughing. I ended the call abruptly and made my way back into Dean's bedroom. He was sitting in the middle of his giant, king sized bed, just smiling at me. No shirt on, covers around his waist. He was perfect.

"What?" I asked him.

He shook his head, patting the spot on the bed next to him. I crawled up to where he was, trying my hardest not to spill the milk. It had been like this everyday for the past week. I'd wake up next to him, we'd eat breakfast, he'd go to physical therapy, come home, and it was back in the bed for the both of us. While he was gone, I'd be searching for more jobs. Though, it was proving difficult when I had to explain why I was fired from my last job. I still wasn't over that. I was happy at TAP, I really thought I was going to be there for a while.

Dean brought up the idea that I start looking for available spaces and maybe look into starting up that bookstore that I had always dreamed of opening. It definitely stuck in the back of my mind. However, I'd need a loan, and I had no idea how to run a business. Just because I had a business degree didn't qualify me to start my own.

When my parents died, I literally had to look up on Google 'What To Do When Your Parents Die'. I mean, if push came to shove, I could always Google how to start a business.

"So," He said, wrapping his long legs around me and pulled me back to rest on his chest. "It's your birthday. What do you want?"

"Just a nice dinner at a nice restaurant." I replied. I had thought about it long and hard, but that was all that I could think of.

I was sure Dean was thinking of something extravagant like a trip to Paris or New York, or a thousand dollar gift card to some expensive boutique. But all that I wanted was dinner, and maybe if I was feeling really spoiled, a walk downtown under the bright lights of the strip.

"That's it?" He was surprised.

"Just dinner. I even bought a new dress for the occasion."

"So you were planning this?" He asked. "What else were you planning?"

I smiled innocently up at him.

He ducked his head to kiss me sweetly on the lips. Those lips were like wine; sweet, sweet wine. I shifted so that I was straddling him, ignoring the bulge in his boxers. I had gotten used to it, and no longer let it bother me. Teasing him was so much more fun. I pinned his hands over his head, and ran my nails down the undersides of his arms, down to his ribs.

Goosebumps formed on his skin so easily. His eyes rolled back, fluttering shut. Moments like this made me wish I wasn't keeping my virginity locked up. I did want him, more than anything. Just because I was a virgin didn't mean I couldn't have these moments where I marveled over how beautiful he was. The sun kissed skin, the toning of his muscles, his chest hair. I needed these moments to remind myself that he was here, underneath me, _with me_. No one else.

"Please don't-" He begged as I placed the tiniest, fragile kisses near his collarbone. "Don't tease me, Callie."

His voice was so soft; so low and dripping with desire, and it sounded like he really didn't want me to stop. He would have to wait, though.

I slid off of him, settling by his side. He sighed but wrapped his arms around me anyways. "Let's go back to sleep." I told him.

He yawned. "Happy Birthday, kid."

I waited until he was asleep to slip out of the bed. I scribbled a note for him, telling him to be ready at eight and left it on my pillow, before I jumped in the shower. I had so much to do before tonight. I wanted it to be perfect; from my hair down to my toenails, and I hadn't had my nails done in the longest time.

"Alright guys!" I yelled at the construction crew in my apartment. "I've got a big date tonight and I need my apartment back! I have to get ready!"

They filed out one by one, leaving me to start the long process that was getting ready. The dress that I was wearing tonight, a strapless black and white sweetheart dress, was draped over my mattress. Next to it were a pair of black heels and a clutch purse.

I threw on a skirt and a white tank top, deciding that it would probably be best to go get my hair done instead of attempting to do it myself. Knowing me, I'd set myself on fire with the curling iron, and I really couldn't afford to have that happen on my birthday. Not today.

"Welcome to Curl Up &amp; Dye someone will be right with you!" An older, white haired lady said from her station.

I browsed through a few books, looking for something nice. The last time I had my hair done was when my mom cut it in the middle of the kitchen floor. Curls would be cute. Maybe bangs? Curls and bangs?

"Hi! I'm Violet, I'm going to be your stylist today. How can I help you?" I looked up to see a petite woman with dark brown hair that faded into pastel pink. She was covered in tattoos, and had an eyebrow piercing.

"Hi Violet, my name is Callie and I am having a dilemma."

"What seems to be the problem?" She sat down next to me.

"Well it's my birthday and I made reservations at Picasso for me and my b- friend for tonight and it's supposed to be really special and I just really want to look nice and my hair is so flat and frizzy and can you help me? Please?"

"Girl! It's no problem!" Violet grabbed me by the wrist and led me to her workstation. "I'm going to take care of you."

Violet immediately went to work on my hair. I wasn't sure what she had planned, but she promised me that it would look great. I could do nothing but trust her; the girl who's hair didn't seem to have a single split end even after it was obviously bleached many times to get to that color of pink. She was sweet and knowledgeable. We talked about tattoos and piercings. I rambled on about all the tattoo ideas I had, and how I was too afraid to get one.

She boasted about her two cats at home; Marlowe and Jigsaw. She even showed me some pictures. We bonded over Grey's Anatomy and how Doctor McDreamy really isn't all that dreamy. I told her all about Tennessee, and what it was like growing up in a small town. On the other hand, she was born and raised in Vegas and had no desire to ever leave. She was a Nicholas Sparks fan, like myself, and told me that my bookstore idea was a great idea if I could set up a little stand for her to sell her amazing cupcakes.

As we waited for the curls to set, Violet did my nails for me free of charge as a birthday gift.

Before I knew it, three hours had gone by, and my hair was finally done. I had to give them woman props, because it was so beautiful. So different than I had imagined. Delicate curls and braids, with diamond pins intricately woven through.

"My God, Violet. It's so beautiful."

"Thank you. I don't mean to toot my own horn, but _toot toot_." She laughed.

"Do you think Dean will like it?" I asked her.

"He better." She said. "You need to come back here and tell me how it goes tonight."

"I will."

She spritzed me with a little bit more hairspray, making sure that it didn't go anywhere when I stepped back out into the Nevada weather. Thankfully there was no wind, just a slight breeze. I had an hour left before I was supposed to be meeting Dean. My stomach was in knots. There were a thousand butterflies dancing around inside me. Saying I was nervous was just a slight understatement.

I could hear music from Dean's apartment as I quietly made my way up the hallway. I wasn't going to lie, I was partly afraid that I would be ready to go at eight, and he would still be sleeping. The man did like to sleep in, and was a heavy sleeper at that.

When I finished getting dressed, I stood in front of the mirror. I barely looked like myself. That girl wasn't me, she couldn't be. She was beautiful and happy. She was the portrait of the celebrity on the red carpet, and not the girl that got caught on a hot day taking out the trash. The dress fit like a glove; it was simple and classy.

I heard a knock from the front door and let out a deep breath. It was now or never.

Dean stood on the other side of the door; dark jeans and a button up. His hair was combed back and curly on the ends, my favorite. I tried to suppress the gigantic smile on my face. I took deep breaths, tried to shake out all the jitters. I didn't want to seem like a giant doofus when I opened that door.

"Come on, Cal. You can do this." I reminded myself as I sucked in a deep breath as my hand hovered over the doorknob.

His expression immediately changed when I opened the door. At first he was smiling, but his smile quickly disappeared as his eyes roamed over my frame. My heart was pounding. I had no idea what he was thinking. A shivers shot through my entire body, and I could feel the goosebumps forming on the backs of my arms.

"Oh my-" He swallowed hard. "You are beautiful."

A blush crept to my cheeks as everything seemed to fall into place. "Thank you." I managed to squeak out. Though, it sounded more like a tiny little mouse had said it, and not me. I mentally kicked myself in the brain.

Dean held his hand out to me and I took it, leading me to the elevator. "I feel under-dressed."

"Don't be silly, you look very handsome."

"Callie, I-" He was cut short by the elevator doors popping open. I prompted him to continue, but he shook his head, leading me out to his car. He even opened the door for me.

We drove in silence mostly. Dean's hand held mine, and rested gently on my thigh. His thumb stroking the back of my hand softly. Every time we stopped at a red light he would take his eyes from the road just to look at me. I tried not to smile, or blush, but I was failing miserably at both.

Our reservations were for 8:30, and we arrived right on time. I requested a private booth, in the back of the restaurant, just to keep Dean comfortable in case there were any prying eyes lurking about.

"See anything good?" I asked him. I looked up to see him holding the menu upside-down, with the most confused look on his face. "Dean, the menu is upside-down."

"Fuck," he mumbled under his breath. "I thought I was holding it upside-down the first time."

I stifled a giggle as our waiter brought wine to the table. "Are we ready to order?"

"Yes, sir. I would like the Maine Lobster Salad, please." I replied.

"Uh, I'll have the um- Sauteed Steak of A Foy Grass."

I had to look away so that I didn't laugh out loud. The waiter was also suppressing a smile. He took our menus and left, letting us know that it would be up shortly.

"Steak of A Foy Grass?" I asked Dean.

"I don't know how to read Italian."

"Sauteed Steak of "A" Foie Gras." I repeated to him. "I took Italian in college."

Dean held my hand from across the table. My heart fluttered against my ribs. "Is there anything else I should know about you?"

I shrugged my shoulders. _I like you a lot_, I thought to myself. "I know some Italian, it's not a big deal."

"Everything about you is a big deal."

_Don't say things like that, _I thought as I chewed on my bottom lip. I was so uncontrollably nervous that I could not think of a single thing to say; drowning in the spotlight of his eyes.

"When are you gonna get James to fly down?" He asked.

"As soon as my apartment's done. Have you seen it? They're almost done and it looks fantastic."

"Yeah, I poked my head in there earlier." He gave me a small smile.

"When am I going to meet your friends?" I asked. Dean talked so highly of Roman and Seth. He really loved the both of them. I loved hearing stories of their adventures on the road together.

"Soon, I promise. I think you'd really like them. Seth's a huge dweeb, you'll get along with him most, I'm sure."

"Are you calling me a dweeb?"

The waiter brought the food out.

"No not at all."

The food was delicious. We ate, we talked, and my nerves were finally settling. After we ate, Dean paid after I fought him on it. This was my idea, I should have paid. Maybe I was just scared that this felt so official.

There were so many tourists on the strip. Many of them stopped Dean for an autograph and a quick picture. I stood by silently, watching with a smile. He made so many people happy. We stood outside the Bellagio, the fountains were spectacular. So many couples stood around them, kissing, while they got someone else to take a picture.

"What next?"

"Wanna take a walk?"

I could have pegged this as the best birthday I've ever had, if there wasn't an inkling of guilt resonating in the pit of my stomach. I knew my parents would have been proud of me, though. Especially my mother. She would have loved Dean. And James, he was rooting for this.

It didn't matter though, that guilt was still there.

We stopped at a Starbucks and got cupcakes and coffee, and then decided to head back to the apartment, because Dean had a surprise for me. I had no idea what it was, because I hadn't expected him to get me anything. If the apartment was decorated with rose petals and there was champagne on the bed, he was going to be shit out of luck.

I looked to cross the street, but suddenly my heart stopped. On the sidewalk across from us, walked Alisha and Reece; hand-in-hand, lovey-dovey smiles on their faces. It didn't take long for Dean to see what I had seen, and before I knew it, he was taking off after the couple; fist balled.

"Dean, don't!" I called after him, but by the time I had gotten to the other side of the street, he already had Reece pinned up against the wall by his shirt collar.

Alisha was screaming at him, trying to pull him off, but it wasn't working. Dean was furious.

"If you ever threaten _my girl_ again, I swear to you that you'll be breathing out of a tube for the rest of your fuckin' life. Do you understand me?"

I had never seen this side of Dean. The dangerous, fighting side of him. What he did on screen wasn't real, at least, it wasn't supposed to be real. He wasn't supposed to be the same person. But this person _was _Dean Ambrose. The Lunatic Fringe. The Unstable one. I was scared. Shaking in my heels, scared. I would have thought that Reece would have been terrified, but he was laughing. Reece was laughing in the face of the man who had just told him that he would seriously injure him if he ever threatened me again.

_Laughing_.

These people were crazier than Dean could ever pretend to be.

Without another word, Dean reeled his fist back and sprung it right into Reece's nose. Immediately Alisha quit screaming, Dean gave her a stern look, but didn't say anything to her. He shook his hand, mumbling something to himself and then turned to me.

"Now, are you ready to go home?"

I bit my lip and nodded my head. He took my hand and led me back to the car. As we rode in silence, I kept repeating two words in my head.

_"My girl."_

* * *

**There was supposed to be more, but I cut it short because we're already over 3,000 words. **

**1\. The Wolves and the Ravens - Rogue Valley**

**2\. Wrong Club - The Ting Tings**

**3\. ****Can't Take My Eyes Off You - Cary Brothers****

**4\. Waste Myself - This Providence**

**I think you guys are really going to like the next chapter *innocent smiles***

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged.**


	19. Try A Little Tenderness

**Hey, Rossi's Lil Devil reminded me of something! SONG REQUESTS! Do you guys have any songs in mind that you think describe Dean and Callie? I'd love to give them a listen, and maybe put them in the playlist.**

**A huge thank you to those of you who reviewed; UntilNeverDawns, lookitsria, 00redsvt, xSamiliciousx, Damnitambrose, Rossi's Lil Devil, Vividfairy20, nattiebroskette, and Sinistergateslegend. I hope you all enjoy this as much as I did.**

* * *

The tension was thick.

It thinned out the air and I knew that I wasn't just hallucinating that it was hard to breathe. It was. It was the build-up, the foreplay, the moment that I knew I would have to face sooner rather than later. If I said I hadn't planned for this to happen, I would be lying. But I never thought it would feel like this.

My back was pressed up against the cold wall of the elevator. A chilling shudder moved through my body like a wave. Dean stood directly in front of me, and even though I wasn't looking at him- I couldn't, because I knew that if I did I'd be a putty in his hands- I knew that he was watching me; searching for verification, validation, allowance.

My eyes flickered up to his and then traveled down that perfect nose, to rest on his lips. I needed them. I wanted them to find every inch of my body. I rested a hand on his hip, lopping my fingers through a belt loop. I slightly tugged, pulling him closer to me, silently wishing that we could be infused.

He took the hint, hoisting me up to him, allowing my legs to wrap tightly around his waist. The doors sprang open. I was already working at the buttons on his shirt. His skin was so warm underneath the thin fabric.

I couldn't wait any longer.

He fumbled with his keys as he tried to get in the apartment as quickly as he could. I dropped his shirt to the floor, as I felt his hands clawed at my back. Before I knew it we were falling to the bed, and I was working on the zipper of his jeans.

"Wait, Callie." He stopped me after I popped open the button. He took my hands in his, kissing each one of my fingertips delicately. "There's no need to hurry."

Dean sat up underneath me, leaning against the headboard. He was the image of perfection, and I wanted to memorize every part of him with my mouth as if my eyes weren't good enough; from the stubble on his chin to the silk skin of his abs. I wanted to know how they felt against my lips.

We sat there, just watching each other. With wide eyes and long, heavy breaths we slowed the pace. A softer, more sensual pace that had me desperately impatient. Dean's hand cupped my cheek. His rough thumb caressed my skin as my eyes lulled back. He placed a tender kiss on my temple, my cheek, the tip of my nose, the corner of my mouth, my chin. Then his lips softly found mine.

There was nothing more passionate than this.

Deans hands roamed my back, as the kiss deepened. I could feel him twirling strands of hair that had escaped from it's place, slightly tugging at them. The sensation sparked something deep inside of me that hadn't already been lit. I began pulling my hair out of it's confines, throwing bobby-pins every which way, until my hair was completely free. Dean snaked a hand through it, balling a fist, and pulling my head backwards; exposing my neck to him, allowing his lips to completely devour me.

He bit down, a throaty moan escaped my lips. Dean pulled back to look at me, his eyes were dark and hungry. Without a word being said, I knew he was ready. I could feel the zipper on my dress start to come undone. He was taking him time; slow, teasing me like I had teased him for weeks. It was okay now that he was in control, he could do whatever he wanted.

I was anxious. I had never been naked in front of a man before. I had never seen a naked man before. Not in person, anyways. What if he didn't like me? What if my boobs were too small? What if my thighs were too jiggly? What if he thought the small stretchmarks on my hip were disgusting?

_Stop thinking,_ I told myself.

The dress was barely hanging on to me, now. Dean lifted me off of him, flipping me over so that he was on top, now. He grabbed the ends of the fabric and inched it down the length of my body until I was laying there in nothing but a pair of grey, cotton underwear. I studied his facial expression, desperate to find any clue on how he was feeling, but found nothing but pure, unadulterated lust.

It wasn't fair that I was here, nearly naked in front of him, while he still had his jeans on. The undone button was teasing at me to finish the job. I sat up quickly, hands flying to his zipper and slowly, if not slower than he undid my dress, I unzipped the short zipper of his jeans. He maneuvered out of them quickly, tossing them across the room.

I didn't focus on anything other than the erection that was so desperately wanting to be free. Instinctively, I teased it, running a finger along the base to the tip. Dean's head rolled back as he cursed under his breath. I peeled the elastic of his boxers down, and watched with wide eyes as his cock bobbed in the openness. Gripping it with one hand, I wrapped my lips around the tip. As I opened my mouth further, allowing Dean to slide himself inside of me completely, I could feel him beginning to shake under my touch.

Dean pulled himself from me, taking himself in his hand, and outlining my lips with the tip of his cock. He dipped into my mouth, first only just a little, and then all at once; mumbling curse words into the quietness of his bedroom.

"Lay down."

I did as I was told, laying back on the cool sheets. He stroked himself as he watched my exposed body waiting for him, completely eager for his next move. He wedged himself between my legs, bending completely, hovering over me. He trailed hungry kisses from my jaw to my chest, taking time on each one of my breasts; cupping both of them in his large hands, sucking and nibbling on my hard nipples.

The feeling was amazing. It tickled and hurt, and all I wanted was more. I pulled at Dean's hair, pushing his head to go further down. He kissed and bit and sucked his way from my breasts to navel, and finally stopped over the spot I had been keeping locked up. He looked up at me, as if to ask me if it were okay for him to continue. Like I would want to just stop _there_.

"Please." I begged.

He inched my panties down my thighs, pulling them over my knees, and dropped them over the side of the bed. This was it. There was nothing else for me to hide from him. He had me in the most vulnerable position. Dean Ambrose had seen all of me, knew everything about me, and he still wasn't leaving. He was still here, placing a line of kisses up my inner thigh.

The intensity was mounting. I had only dreamt of what this would feel like since I had learned what sex was. I felt like I was going to explode as Dean hovered between my legs, breathing slowly onto my sex. His eyes watched me, hot and wild, testing me.

Suddenly, his hot mouth was covering me. I gasped at the feeling of something completely new there, but after the initial shock subsided, I was able to enjoy it. The sounds of him sucking my clit, the wiggling of his tongue inside me was bewildering. My entire body had to have heated up a good fifty degrees. Dean's hands remained on my hips keeping my in place. Mine roamed the bed around me, frantically; pulling at the sheets, my breasts, his hair. My back arched to him as his tongue danced around my slit. His unshaven cheeks tickled my thighs, almost causing me to giggle.

And then he hit something. Something so raw, like a live wire. I felt it down to the core, and it sent a tremor through me. He came back to it again, and again, and again, and again until I was screaming his name so loudly I knew the entire building could hear me. I moved my hips against his mouth, holding his head in place and I rode out the wave of pleasure that rocked my entire being.

Dean pulled himself from me, breathing heavily, licking his lips. He pulled me into a deep kiss, allowing me to taste myself on his tongue. Then he hitched my leg over his side, and guided his cock to my entrance. I could see the wild inside of him, waiting to bust free. I refrained from clamping my eyes shut. I didn't want him to think that I was scared of him, because I trusted this man. I knew that he wasn't going to hurt me.

"Shit." He swore. I knew why. I could feel how tight it was as he broke through my walls. His large cock adjusting my insides. His hand dug into my hip, pulling me closer to him. We were already close, our bodies slick with sweat, tightly pressed against another. But it wasn't enough. Dean needed me closer.

I cried out in pain, I couldn't help it. Feeling all of him inside of me at once was almost unbearable. Dean paused, allowing me time to adjust. He threaded his hands with mine, pinning them behind my head, bringing us even closer as we rode out the pause. He pulled out slowly, causing me to whimper, and delved back into once more.

The pace had began shifting; faster and faster, and I could feel my body reacting. The was no more pain, only pleasure. A deep, rumbling pleasure inside of me that made my insides do flips. I called out his name and every other profanity in the book, until that raw explosion came close to erupting again.

Dean was close, waiting for me to finish before he was able to bask in his own pleasure.

The stars formed in my eyes as his name tumbled from my lips like a prayer.

I was trembling. The warm, fluid like sensation washed over me like a stepping into a hot bath.

Dean's breathing was heavy in my ear as he reached the edge of his climax. His chest was heaving, beads of sweat culminated on his forehead causing his hair to stick to his skin. I reached my hand up, moving the hair from his face to get a good look at those bright, sky blue eyes. I was still panting, he was out of breath, but the moment couldn't have been any more perfect.

"Best birthday ever." I blurted.

Dean let out a breathy laugh. "It's not over yet." He told me, glancing at the clock on his bedside table. "I still have a gift for you."

"That wasn't it?" What else could he have that would top _that?_

He propped himself up and slid off of the bed. "Wait here." He warned as he casually walked out of the room, not even bothering to put on any clothes. I giggled as I scoped his backside.

After a few moments, I heard the soft sounds of Otis Redding coming from the living room. I wrapped the sheet around my body, and made my way to the door. I peaked out of his bedroom and down the hallway, confused.

_What was he up to? _

"Dean?" I asked as I walked out into the living room. I saw that he had managed to find a pair of boxers. Dean stood in the middle of the room, lazy smile on his face. "What are you doing?"

My eyes darted to the coffee table. On it sat a record player, but not just any record player, it was my father's. It looked almost brand new. I gasped, holding my hands over my mouth as tears came to my eyes.

"I had it fixed for you." He said as his arms wrapped around me. "What good is a record player without some Otis? I know you love him. I would always hear you singing him in the morning when you first moved in across the hall."

"Dean," I said. It was all I could say.

I turned to face him. He was looking down at me with those eyes, and that smile, and that dimple. I couldn't believe he had done this for me. He knew how much it meant to me, and he had it fixed. I was at a complete loss for words.

"Happy birthday, Callie."

* * *

(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ smut! **How sweet is Dean, though?**

**1\. Silhouette - Active Child feat. Ellie Goulding**

**2\. Try A Little Tenderness - Otis Redding**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	20. The Morning After

**So I take it you guys enjoyed that last update? Thanks for all the lovely reviews; nattiebroskette, ThatGirl54, Vividfairy20, UntilNeverDawns, 00redsvt, Mandamirra10, Rossi's Lil Devil, xSamiliciousx, lookitsria, Damnitambrose, Sinistergateslegend, ghunter182003, nmoxracha, Khaaaaaaan, and fearloathingky.**

**One of you picked up on something big in that last chapter, good. I wont say who or what it was, but I'm glad that someone's getting the hints.**

**Chapter 20, wow. I've surpassed Sempiternal. Never thought I'd make it this far. I wouldn't have been able to do it without you guys, I mean it. Think of this as a halfway point, but I'm not promising 40 chapters.**

**Sidenote: This Is When I Leave You is an amazing movie and I recommend you all go see it.**

* * *

The sunlight poured through the windows.

A warm light stretched across the floor, danced on the walls, and illuminated Dean's bedroom.

Our little fortress.

I propped myself up on my elbow, turning to him and watched as he slept peacefully. There was no possible way that this man was violent, insane, and unstable. A little unhinged, maybe. And maybe a little lost, but he was perfect to me, and I would take him in any form he came.

Lord, what did I do to become so lucky?

My mind flashed back to the events of the night before. My cheeks burned as I thought of the intimacy. We had been so close. Our bodies came together like two puzzle pieces that were desperate to find one another. I clenched my legs together as I imagined the feeling of him inside of me; my stomach flipped. I bit my lip as I lightly traced a finger down his forearm.

"What are you doing?" A smirk tugged at the corners of his perfect mouth.

His eyes slowly opened. I shook my head and smiled at him. "Nothing," I whispered.

"Come here." He says, and of course I listen.

Immediately felt his erection against my inner thigh as I crawled on top of him. My naked breasts pressed tightly to his chest as I met his lips for a good morning kiss. He dragged his nails down my back, causing for a deep moan to escape my throat. His hands cupped my ass, squeezing them tightly. The sudden roughness was a pleasant surprise that I enjoyed. I was learning things about myself and my body, and all these new sensations that I never knew, and Dean was my teacher.

I could feel him rubbing the tip of his cock along my slit, before he placed his hands on my hips and lowered me on to him. A gasp flew from my mouth, as I was surprised by the sudden pain. It definitely hurt worse the second time. Dean didn't stop, though. We both knew this was natural. He gripped my hips tightly, nails digging into my lower back, grinding me into him harder and harder.

The climax was coming quickly. The warm, shivery sensation built up in my core. The more I rode his cock, the more I felt like I was going to explode. Dean sat up and pulled one of my breasts in his mouth, slightly tugging at the nipple with his teeth. That was all I needed to let go, for the wave to come crashing over me.

Not worried about achieving his own pleasure, Dean pulled himself out of me. He wrapped his arms tightly around my trembling frame. A hand softly played with my hair. "Mmm, I wish I didn't have to go to physical therapy."

"Then don't." I said into his neck. The faint smell of cologne and skin was intoxicating.

"I have to. I didn't go yesterday because it was your birthday and I wanted to sleep in."

"Yeah, don't use my birthday as an excuse. You had plenty of time to go while I was out." I rolled off of him and took the sheet with me, leaving him completely exposed on the bed. I tied the sheet around my breasts so that I wouldn't have to hold it up. "What?" I asked Dean who was just staring at me.

"You're so fucking beautiful."

I didn't say anything; just turned around and smiled to myself as I made my way to the kitchen. I fixed myself a bowl of cereal and texted James, a simple "It happened". I wasn't expecting him to call me back right away, I knew he was busy. But these were the kinds of things James and I had stayed up late at night, sitting on my roof, talking about. He'd bring the schnapps, and we'd mix it into our coffee, sit up for hours talking about life.

I always told him this was never going to happen for me. I never thought it would. It definitely wouldn't have if I stayed in Tennessee. Not just losing my virginity, but being happy. I certainly wasn't happy at home. Not this kind of happy, anyways.

Dean made my heart smile. He made me forget about the past; things that I had no more control over. And he made me only think good things about the future. Like how everything could only go up from here for me. He made me think that I would accomplish my dreams, because that's what he wanted for me.

Of course, that nagging guilt stuck in my side.

I had no idea what part of me was screaming at me that this was temporary. Dean would eventually be going back on the road, and I'd be the hometown girl again. Little Callie, so naive; falling in love with the man she lost her virginity to because no one else has ever made her feel that way. And that was all that it was, a feeling she had never experienced.

_Stop thinking._

Dean swiped his keys off of the counter, pulling me out of my vicious thoughts.

"I'll be back soon, alright?" He leaned over the counter for a kiss.

"Not soon enough." I replied and met his lips.

After I finished my cereal, I got dressed and walked over to my own apartment. The construction crew were putting the final touches on everything, and I couldn't have been more excited. Just a few more days I'd have my space back. Not that I didn't like staying with Dean, but I missed being able to completely stretch out in my own bed.

My phone vibrated in my pocket. It was James. "Hel-"

_"It happened? What do you mean it happened?" _He practically screamed at me.

"Hello Callie, nice to hear from you. How was your birthday? Did you get everything you hoped for?" I mocked him. "Oh, well James, if you mean what I think you mean by 'did you get everything you hoped for', then _yes_. I did."

He gasped. _"Callie Beth!"_

"Sorry I beat you to it."

_"Whoa, who said you beat me to it?"_

"James Cooke, what aren't you telling me?"

He paused for a moment. _"I met someone."_

It was my turn to gasp. "What!? James, this is huge news. Is that why you've been so busy lately and not answering the phone or returning my phone calls? Who is this man? What is his name? What does he look like, oh my God. James!"

He laughed into the phone. I missed that laugh so much. _"His name is Alex. He's from Gatlinburg and we met at this open mic night for writers. Kind of like a poetry reading, but not a lot of poetry. But anyways! He liked this short story that I read, and I don't know. I like him a lot, Cal. Probably too much."_

"I know how you feel." I mumbled.

_"What was that?"_ He asked.

"I said I know how you feel."

_"You're freaking out right now, aren't you?" _He knew me too well.

"Not necessarily freaking out, but I just feel like this is going to be a fucking disaster. I don't know how to be in a relationship, what even is that? How does it work? Is there an off switch when I can't handle it anymore? Because that's bound to happen with me."

_"Cal."_

"Yeah?"

_"Was the sex great?"_

"Oh my God, Yes."

_"Okay, then run with that. Who cares about relationships? This is 2014, people barely do relationships anymore. Dean is your first, there's a very high possibility that he's not going to be your last. So don't worry about it. You're twenty-two. Three. You're twenty-three. Have fun. It's like I told you when you first moved to Vegas, live your life. Callie, you deserve it. And don't worry about making friends, they'll find you. Don't worry about me either, because I'm doing _great_ over here. Stop thinking so much. Focus on yourself."_

"I hate that you always know what to say and you make it sound so God damn cliche when you say it."

_"I am a writer."_

"Call me back when you're published, Shakespeare."

It was about time I started listening to someone other than the voices in the back of my mind telling me how stupid I was for thinking that this was going to last forever. James was right. Who cares? If it lasts forever, that's great, and I'll be happy. If it fails miserably, then it was a great experience that I'll remember forever.

I pulled out my laptop and scoured through classifieds, searching for empty spaces near by. Maybe I would give this bookstore thing a swing. Why not? I'm living my life, right? A few hours later, Dean slid through the door.

"Well?" I asked him, hoping for some good news.

"They said my shoulder is doing much better and I should be back in a month tops." He replied, falling across the couch on top my lap.

"Are you ready to go back, though?"

"It isn't hurting as bad. I guess we'll see in a month. By the way, Raw is going to be in Vegas in like two weeks. Want to go with me? You'll finally get to meet Seth and Roman."

I smiled at him. "I'd love to go with you."

Sure, I wasn't a huge fan, but Dean was passionate about it. I had to see what all the hype was about. He puckered his lips, beckoning me for a kiss. I ducked my head to meet him. The kiss immediately deepened.

He was the first to pull away, though. "I think I'm going to go take a shower." A hidden meaning dripped off of his words. Dean stood up off the couch and pulled his shirt over his head, dropping it in my lap.

I gave him a few minutes head start. He was already in the shower when I reached the bathroom. I stripped off my tank top, knowing he could see me perfectly though the glass. Slowly, I unbuttoned my shorts and dropped them to the floor. Dean was already hard; cock throbbing in the steam of the hot water.

"Is there room for one more?" I asked innocently.

He grabbed me by the wrist and yanked me inside. "You're insatiable."

"You started it."

* * *

**Smutty filler chapter, I know. But I had to get it out of the way before I jump into the delicious drama that is yet to come. Hope you enjoyed it all the same.**

**1\. Devil's Backbone - The Civil Wars****

**2\. Alive With The Glory Of Love - Say Anything**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	21. Honest

**I'd like to thank Mandamirra10 for everything; not just with this story, but just by her being awesome. You have no idea how much I appreciate it.**

**I'd also like to thank everyone who reviewed! Sinistergateslegend, nmoxracha, UntilNeverDawns, Thatgirl54, nattiebroskette, Rossi's Lil Devil, Vividfairy20, Khaaaaaaan, Damnitambrose, xSamiliciousx, Mandamirra10, ChelleLew, 00redsvt, lookitsria, and turningthepaige (for that 200th review). Also, if any of you reviewed the few oneshots that I published over the last couple days, I appreciate that as well. **

**Speaking of oneshots, if any of you would like to request a oneshot... Well, requests are open, I guess. Or if you have a prompt you'd like to send in. Go for it, my friends. More Ambrose oneshots are on there way, just so you know. I think I might throw in a Seth oneshot, too. Just for the hell of it.**

* * *

Insatiable - _adjective_; Impossible to satisfy.

That wasn't exactly the correct term for my recent behavior. I wasn't insatiable, because I was being satisfied. Oh, I was being satisfied every _single_ night, and most mornings, and sometimes in the middle of the day too. I believe the term Dean meant to say was 'nymphomaniac'. I was indeed affected with excessive sexual desire. And to be completely honest, I was not happy unless I was getting some.

The good part about this 'problem' was that Dean didn't seem to mind. What guy would? There's a beautiful, eager young woman walking around your apartment naked and waking you up with morning head. In what world would a guy not want that? Besides, I was making up for lost time. Everyone my age in Tennessee had lost their virginity by the time they were sixteen. Somehow, I needed to compensate for the near seven years that they had on me.

"You're going to need to put some clothes on." He told me.

Okay, so maybe he had been a little irritable lately. I blamed it on the fact that he was exhausted. How much sleep could the man get when I was keeping him up most nights? I suppose I'd give him a break for today; his friends were in town. I couldn't keep him locked up, and I meant that literally; handcuffs had become my new favorite thing. So had sex on the kitchen counter, that was really fun.

My apartment was finished, but I had barely spent any time there. All of the space that I thought I would want, turns out I must not have wanted it that badly, because I was spending every second with Dean. There were nights where I'd playfully get up to leave, just to see if he'd ask me to stay. When he didn't, I'd start a stupid argument and leave, but I always found my way back to his bed before morning came.

I was sitting on his couch, completely naked, reading the newspaper. I had become significantly comfortable in my own skin, to the point that putting on clothes felt foreign. I also secretly hoped he would take the hint.

"Callie, please? They'll be here any minute."

By 'they', he meant Seth and Roman. Today was the big day. I would finally get to meet the men that Dean cared about more than anyone. I was excited, but more nervous than anything. Usually, I couldn't care less what anyone thought of me, but these two men meant the world to Dean. I wanted to impress them.

"Fine." I said with a sigh.

I threw on the clothes I had on last night and left, slamming his door a little too hard. I kept repeating to myself that he was just tired, that was all it was.

When I put on jeans, I felt too constricted. My legs felt like they couldn't breathe. Shorts were the same way, only it was my pelvic region that still couldn't breathe this time. I settled on a dress that I had picked up at a Goodwill. Most of my shopping was done there, or at Walmart, after Alisha and her cronies had demolished my closet. I barely had anymore $100 blouses. It was mostly back to cotton v-necks and ripped jeans.

As I was fixing my makeup, I could hear Dean greeting his friends. My face flushed; this was it, the time was now. After I finished, I pulled on my shoes and walked back over, knocking a few times on his door. I didn't want to use the key I had. He might not have told them that he gave some girl a key to his apartment. It wasn't a huge deal, he did say the reason he gave it to me was so that I could water his already dead plants when he left for the road again.

_"This must be her?" _A deep voice said on the other side of the door. He opened it to reveal a monster of a man. Big, and tall, and thick. I felt an inch tall standing next to him. Roman Reigns, the juggernaut. It was scary how much bigger he was in person than on the television. "Well hello, little lady."

"Hi." I peeped.

He extended an arm, offering me to come inside. I slid past him. Dean and Seth were sitting on the couch. I moved to sit on Dean's lap. It was silent for a moment and I chewed on my bottom lip. This is exactly what I was hoping to avoid.

Dean finally cleared his throat. "Uh, guys, this is Callie. Callie, this is Seth and Roman."

I instantly felt like I was the odd man out, which I was. The two men were practically looking at me like I had something on my face, and they were afraid to say it. Obviously, I wasn't what they had pictured when Dean told them about me. If he even told them about me. I couldn't help but think that maybe this was his first time mentioning that he had been seeing someone. Seth shook my hand, but didn't really say anything, which I found interesting seeing as Dean said I would get along with him the most. Roman was at least nice enough to ask me a few questions like where I was from, and if I watched wrestling prior to meeting Dean.

It was awkward to say the least.

"I'll be right back." I said.

I stood up and scurried off to the hallway bathroom, giving them a moment to talk about me while I wasn't there. I was smart enough to know that the men needed a minute, and that that was why the banter in the room went from lively to dead in the few seconds that I arrived.

_"I'm starting to understand what you were saying earlier. __She is a lot younger than you, dude." _That was Seth.

_"She's twenty-three, that's not _a lot _younger. I've been with girls that were eighteen." _I cringed at Dean's words.

_"Yeah, but she's twenty-three _and_ you were her first. So when you complain about her only wanting sex, maybe you should've thought about it before you got yourself in this situation. I'm not telling you how to live your life, man. I'm just concerned that maybe you bit off a little more than you could chew with this one?" _

Wait, Dean was complaining? And what did he mean that Dean 'bit off a little more than he could chew with _this one_'?

_"I'm not complaining, Seth." _He replied. _"Everything was fine before I fucked her and now she is a completely different person."_

Before he 'fucked' me? And here I was thinking that was the most special night of my life. What was I? Some fan that he met after one of his shows? Another eighteen year old girl that he fucked in the back of a rental car?

_"And you think she's just using you?" _Roman piped up.

I couldn't stand to hear anymore, and pulled the door open, stomping down the hallway. All three men shut up instantly. "Well, I'm going to let you guys catch up. I'm sure you have _a lot_ to talk about." A fake smile was plastered on my face. "Dean, you can come get me whenever you're ready to go? It was so nice to meet you both."

Seth and Roman both awkwardly said their goodbyes. Dean just eyed me. I wasn't incredibly hard to read, he knew something was up. He should have known that I heard their conversation. Couldn't he have waited until I wasn't in the same room, or same apartment, or until he was back on the road with his besties until he started shit-talking our "relationship"? It didn't matter anymore, I left without saying another word.

_"Oooh, Dean's in trouble!" _I heard the two men say through the door. I rolled my eyes. This was all too childish. I graduated high school five years ago, yet this felt like a page right out of Maryville County High school. A few days ago I felt like I would be able to talk to Dean about anything, and that he would return the favor if he had any problems. Obviously, that wasn't the case. Obviously, he was having problems. One, I was too young for him. Two, he thought that i only wanted sex. And, just for the hell of it, his third problem was that I had changed into a completely different person after he 'fucked' me.

I called James to talk to him about the conversation I had just overheard. He told me that later, when Dean's friends were gone, that I should bring it up in an adult manner. No sarcasm, no name-calling, and he added that there was to not be any sex. No sex for at least a week. Here I was addicted to sex, or more the feeling that someone wanted me. Addicted to the feeling that I could get someone off and give someone as much pleasure as they gave me. I thought about not getting that feeling for a week and shook my head. That wasn't happening.

James asked me if anything had changed while were were having sex. The answer was yes. It was just as passionate as the first time, every time. But it was never the same. Something was always different. We'd go at it in the shower, on the bathroom counter, kitchen counter, in the tub, on the couch, on the floor, against a wall, his bed, my bed, doggy style, missionary, reverse cow girl, handcuffs, roleplaying. You name it, we tried it. That wasn't what he meant though.

He meant if anything changed in _Dean_ while we were having sex.

Maybe I was just trying to spare my own feelings, but I didn't think so. Obviously something had changed if he felt the need to _complain_ to his friends. James suggested that Dean and I might need a break. Not just from sex, but a break from seeing each other. That'd be hard, seeing as we were neighbors, but not sleeping with each other every night, and not being around each other 24/7 might be good for us. Distance does make the heart grow fonder, even if that distance is just a few feet across the hall.

_"Just think about what I've said. I know you really like this guy, and I don't want to see it get ruined over a misunderstanding." _James told me.

That's really all that it was. I'm sure if Dean and I just talked about it, everything would go right back to normal.

Raw was amazing. It really was a completely different experience when you're sitting in the crowd, than when you're sitting at home on your couch. Wrestling fans were something else. Dean and I sat up in a box, watching the action. Of course, I had no idea what was going on. He explained how a feud worked, and gave me the run down on how all of the current feuds started off. It wasn't hard to tell that he missed being in that ring.

He was almost cleared to go back. In a couple weeks he'd start travelling again, maybe start at a few live shows just to make sure. I wasn't worried, but I was. I didn't want him to forget about me; go back to sending me a postcard once a month. The man never used his cellphone. I had, in the past two weeks, only seen him on it when he picked up a call from Seth or Roman. He didn't own a laptop, probably would look confused if asked what a webcam was, or Skype. It was going to be difficult going weeks to months without seeing his face, or hearing his voice.

After the show, we hit up a bar in town. I met Roman's long-time girlfriend, Amanda, who everyone seemed to love. It struck a jealous chord in me, somewhere. She fit right in. Granted, she had been travelling with them for a few weeks, so she had the proper time to get acquainted with the group. I still felt like the odd man out, and at times, invisible.

"You look bored!" I hadn't even noticed that Amanda had come sit next to me at the bar. I was too focused on how much fun it seemed like Dean was having. I hadn't seen him interact with anyone other than when we were both out with Alisha's group, though he didn't really seem too into them.

"Sorry! I've just got a lot on my mind." I replied as I stirred my watered down drink.

"I've been there, many times. I'm not going to lie and say it gets any easier, because it doesn't." It was like she was reading my mind.

"Yeah, how do you do it? You and Roman have been together for what, four years?"

She nodded. "It's just takes a lot of communication. Roman and I are constantly on the same page. He loves what he does, and he's only going up from here. Dean's the same way. Their obsessed. There's nothing that you can do to change that, so you just have to go with it. He goes on the road, and he's gone for like _ever_! But when he gets home, it's all about us, and JoJo, of course."

I sighed.

"Well here," She handed me her phone. "Give me your number and we'll keep in touch. I promise I'll keep an eye on him when he comes back on the road."

Amanda was right; Dean and I would just have to get on the same page, because there was no way I could keep him in Vegas.

The car ride back to the apartment was silent. And not the good kind of silent, either. It was a tense, awkward silence, that we both knew was coming. I stopped in front of my apartment door, taking Dean by surprise.

"I think I'm just going to-" I trailed off.

"Are you okay? You've been in a mood all day." He asked.

I exhaled sharply, resisting the urge to smile. "No, I uh- I guess it's because I'm a _'completely different person'_ now, so I'm sorry if I seem moody."

Dean rolled his eyes. "That's not what I meant-"

"Really, Dean? Because if I remember correctly, you said that ever since you fucked me, I turned into someone else. That hurt me. I mean- I thought that was, and I don't want to seem too cliche here, but I thought that was _special_." I hated using that term. It felt forced and childish. "And then you're ragging on me to your friends because I want to be with you!?"

"But you don't just want to be with me, Callie. All you want to do is fuck, constantly. Is it wrong of me to not want that sometimes? I can get that anywhere, and I have. I'm not the most innocent man in the world, I'm sorry if you got your fuckin' hopes up. You were really different than all those girls, and that's what I liked about you. It wasn't just sex all the fuckin' time. You wanted to actually spend time with me and get to know me, and not just because I'm "famous" or whatever. I mean, you're fuckin' beautiful and great in bed, but for fuck's sake it gets old."

"You couldn't have just said something, then? Maybe tell me that this was how you felt? You didn't think that would be a good idea?" I was really trying my hardest not to cry.

Dean laughed. "And hurt your feelings? You think I want to tell you 'no'? I'm only a man, _tuts._"_  
_

I bit down on the inside of my cheek. "So you just go along with it and make me think that everything is fine until you what? Go back on the road and you're finally free?" He didn't say anything. "Maybe I'm not the one who's a different person now. And you know what? You say that _I'm_ the one who's too young for you, but it seems like you're the immature one. You should probably stick to eighteen year old sluts."

Before he could say anything else, I disappeared behind my door and slammed it shut. I leaned my back against the cool wood, sliding down it until I hit the floor. That definitely wasn't how I planned for that conversation to go. We were both too stubborn to actually listen to what the other had to say, and picked up on the smallest details that didn't mean anything and made them into something.

But I knew one thing, I had nothing to apologize for.

"Callie," he hit the door a few times with his fist. "Come on."

And I'd ignore him until pigs flew if that's what it took for him to realize that.

* * *

**So I guess you could say there's... trouble in paradise? Yeah? Sorry. **

**I am so sorry that this took so long. You should all thank Mandamirra10, because she was really the one who gave me the jump to get this finished.**

**1\. Honest - The Neighbourhood**

**2\. Bridges - Broods**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	22. Doing It Wrong

**Thanks to UntilNeverDawns, xSamiliciousx, Beckah Godric-Northman, Rossi's Lil Devil, Khaaaaaaan, nattiebroskette, AmbroseFan, Sinistergateslegend, ThatGirl54, ChelleLew, nmoxracha, lookitsria, Shield316, and shoequeenbee for reviewing. It's nice to see a few new names in this list! Also, shout out to the people who favorite and follow and don't review. Still love ya!**

**Dear nmoxracha, her clothes weren't tight because she is getting fat! She just wasn't used to wearing clothes, so it felt weird. I know what you're thinking! We may cross that bridge, we may not, only I hold the answers! *maniacal laughter***

**Just so you guys don't get your hopes up, there will be _almost _no more Seth and Roman. From here on out this story revolves around Callie and Dean and whatever is going on between them right now and if it's going to be fixed. As much as I love Seth and Roman and want them to be apart of this story, it's just not going to happen. Unless something changes, of course.**

* * *

This was frustrating.

Dean and I hadn't talked in days. That is, unless you count him banging on my door at random times of the day, asking me to come out and talk to him. He was leaving tomorrow, and half of me wanted to set things straight. The other half, well, that was the stubborn half.

Most of my days were spent in the fitness room, taking my anger out on the treadmill; I couldn't physically go anywhere to get away from Dean. I still had no job and no friends, and I wasn't really up for going anywhere by myself. Running in place would have to suffice. And it did, until he would show up. I did my best to ignore him, but the sight of him lifting weights without a shirt on was a little too much for me to handle, and I would end up just going back upstairs.

I had been talking to James about coming to visit me for a few days. He said if he could get the time off, he'd be here in a heartbeat. I was excited at the thought of getting to see my best friend again. I missed him too much. Having him here could definitely boost my spirits, and of course, he could talk some sense into me. Help me figure out what I was supposed to do.

_Maybe just forget about Dean all_ _together,_ My subconscious screamed at me. I couldn't do that, though. He was a part of me. No matter how much I was mad at him, I couldn't take back what had happened between us over the past few months. I gave him everything I had, and I didn't regret it, I just wish that it would have been taken a little bit more seriously. He threatened Reece in the middle of a busy, Vegas street for me. He had my dad's record player fixed for my birthday. He took me to see the Grand Canyon. He was there for me after my apartment was broken into, after I lost my job.

That's why this was so frustrating.

_Just go apologize,_ The reasonable half of my stated firmly.

I looked at the clock, it was late, and he was probably asleep. I wasn't sure what time his flight was in the morning, but I couldn't let this go for another four weeks. It felt so wrong not talking to him.

He opened the door, hair disheveled, only wearing a pair of boxers.

"Hey," I said softly. "Can we talk for a minute?"

A small sigh escaped his lips as he briefly looked over his shoulder. "I don't think this is a good time."

"I just wanted to apologize befo-"

My words stopped short as I saw a petite blonde woman walk from the direction of his bedroom. "Dean? Is everything okay?"

The blood beneath my skin felt like it evaporated, my heart sunk into my stomach, and I suddenly felt cold. This was a joke, right? Ashton Kutcher was going to jump out from behind the door and tell me I was punked? Hilarious!

A few silent seconds passed by, and upon realizing that this was actually happening, I turned on my heel and headed straight for the elevator.

"Callie, wait." I jabbed the 'down' button with my finger a good thirty times. "Come on, Callie. Please?"

"So you don't want to have sex with me, but you'll have sex with someone else? That makes a lot of sense, Dean." This time there was no hiding the tears, because there weren't any. It wasn't sadness in my voice that made it tremble. It was anger.

"I'm sorry, Callie." That was all he said. Like those were the magic words, and I'd suddenly not be angry anymore.

"Sorry for what? Making me think that whatever this was meant something to you? Because it obviously doesn't. Sorry for making me think that you respected me enough to be honest with me? What are you sorry for, Dean?"

This elevator was taking forever. Dean opened his mouth to say something, but the doors finally opened. I stepped inside, turning around to see him standing in the doors, keeping them from closing.

"Whatever you have to say, whatever you're going to apologize for, save it. I'm done with you. You were right, I'm not like those girls that you picked up outside of an arena, but you sure have done a good job in making me feel like one."

I pushed him as hard as I could out of the elevator so that the doors could close. Once they did, the anger subsided and the sadness set in. My mind was racing a mile a minute, and the only thing that I could think to do was get in my car and just drive. I thought about driving all the way to Tennessee, if I could do it in one straight shot without having to stop, I probably would have.

After circling the city, a few times, I stopped at a gas station. I leaned up against the car as I waited for my car to fill up, and sighed. How stupid have I been? I believed everything he said. Like how he wouldn't hurt me. I was right, this was all a game to him. He got bored of playing and decided to get up and walk away. Who cares what happened while the game was going on? Who cares about the other players? Not Dean.

I threw caution out the window and trusted him, and all that I expected was honesty. Maybe he had expected me to catch on because he never asked me to be his girlfriend. Maybe because it wasn't 'official' meant that it didn't matter. Well, it did matter. It mattered to me a lot more than it should have. Here I was pretending that I didn't care what was going on between us, but it felt like my whole world had just shattered.

I kept repeating to myself over and over again that I should'nt have gotten so invested. I shouldn't have done this, or I shouldn't have done that. But it didn't matter. I couldn't take it back. The damage had already been done.

"Callie!" I heard as I twisted the gas cap back on. "Hey!"

I looked up to see Violet, the woman who did my hair the night Dean took me out for my birthday. My stomach churned at the memory. "Hey, Violet." I said to her, but I really wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone.

"How've you been? How'd the big date go?"

There was no escaping this, was there? "It went good! The hair was a success, thank you."

"Good, I'm glad he liked it." She paused for a moment, probably noticing my tear stained cheeks. "Hey, we're about to go out for a drink. Uh, would you like to come?"

"I'm not really dressed for drinks." I replied, tugging at my t-shirt. However, I noticed that Violet was wearing a pair of high-waist shorts and a t-shirt that was tucked in. She wasn't going to buy it.

"Come on, it'll be fun!"

I must be too nice for my own good, because the next thing I knew I was sitting at some dive bar with Violet and a few of her friends. Despite wanting to get completely trashed and forget about Dean and that girl that he was with, I slowly sipped on a Sprite. Violet's friends tried to make conversation with me, but I gave them all two worded answers and eventually they gave up. I should have just gone home.

Violet slid into the booth next to me after her friends abandoned me for the dance floor.

"Boy problems?" She asked.

"Yeah, but I don't really want to talk about it. I've already gotten advice from everyone, and they all tell me the same thing. Talk to him, just talk to him, communication is key. But I tried that, and low and behold he's got some other girl in his apartment with him. What else am I supposed to do? Listen to him apologize to me, and not mean a single word of it?"

She shrugged. "I don't know him, and I don't know the situation, but it sounds to me like maybe you guys just need to take a break. You obviously care about him, if you didn't you wouldn't be upset. So maybe just take a little break and then reevaluate yourself. Give him time to reevaluate himself."

I nodded.

"I have been with my boyfriend for seven years. One day I came home and he was banging his coworker in our bed. I left, I moved out, and didn't talk to him again for six months. Then we started off as friends, and things were good, and ultimately we just realized that there isn't going to be anyone else. He made a mistake, I forgave him. Not saying that you and Dean are the same way, but some time away will tell."

"I hope you're right. I know I was wrong in the fact that I didn't listen to him explain himself, but he's just so bad at explaining himself." I told her.

"Most men are." She laughed. "You know, maybe he just doesn't know how to handle it. Maybe he's not used to committing, so he's reverting back to old ways? That's not the way to do things, but since when do men do the right thing on the first try?"

She was absolutely right, or I was just agreeing with her because I had no idea what I was doing. Still, it was hard to see anything past the blonde in his apartment. They were probably together right now, he was probably telling her not to worry about that girl in the hallway, probably telling her that girl wasn't important. I'll let him have tonight, and the next month to do whatever he wants. But as soon as he comes back, come hell or high water, I'm going to figure out just exactly how much I meant to him.

* * *

**Just to add to the drama, he was sleeping with someone else. Yikes. Anyways, Callie is not one to be pushed around, and is no one's door mat. If Dean thinks he's just going to come back and everything is going to be better, well... I think we all know that's not going to happen.**

**1\. I Was A Fool - Tegan And Sara**

**2\. Doing It Wrong - Drake**

**3\. All I Wanted - Paramore**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	23. Surprise

**Thanks to nattiebroskette, ChelleLew, UntilNeverDawns, AmbroseFan, Sinistergateslegend, AllyMichele, IRENELOVE83, Rossi's Lil Devil, lookitsria, AyeBlaney, xSamiliciousx, Jessipage, alealeale, Shield316, Mandamirra10, insky5967, AliceJericho (i love you so much), DeeMarie416, 00redsvt, and mca for reviewing. You're all so kind. I love you!**

**Dear Guest, I'm updating as fast as I can!**

**Sorry that this took so long. The Walking Dead premiered on Sunday and it was amazing so I went back and re-watched the entire series. I wouldn't let myself update during that time, because I didn't want to get distracted. Besides, I could barely tear my eyes away from Daryl. Speaking of, I'm probably going to re-vamp my Daryl Dixon story here soon (not that any of you were reading it in the first place). But if you're a Walking Dead fan, keep your eyes open for that.**

**All in favor of a Seth or Roman story, say I! There've been a few ideas bouncing around in my head for the two of them, especially Seth. I have the softest spot in my heart for that kid. I mean, he was my first Shield love. I was actually thinking about doing a prequel to Sempiternal. We all know Lucy and Seth were never a couple back before he left for Florida, but I think it'd be cool to explore their friendship. I don't know. I also have an idea that involves Punk... I'm still waiting for someone to send me a prompt. I'm only on my knees begging here, guys.**

**Anyways, enough of my blabbering! Enjoy!**

* * *

The punching bag in the fitness room hadn't done anything to me, yet I had almost beaten it off the chain a few dozen times. All that I could see was the dainty face of that blonde that I had seen in his apartment. The one with the messy hair, wearing his shirt and nothing else. It was burned into the insides of my eyelids. And of course the look on Dean's face as the elevator closed. The last time I had seen him before he left.

He was due back any day now.

It wouldn't matter to me if he ever came back. Not seeing him for a month made it seem like I had gotten over him. Like it was a piece of cake. Like I'd be totally fine and not melt into a puddle as soon as I opened my door and saw him standing there.

I could do better than the man who was never home. I could do better than the man who slept with other girls because that's the only way he knew how to feel better about himself. I could do better than the man who built me up just to make me feel like some side bitch who never really meant anything.

In fact, Violet's friend Kyle was pretty cute; he seemed like a nice guy. The idea of dating someone scared me, though. Actually getting up off of my couch, and going out, and getting to know someone? Doing things the normal way instead of moving across the hall from them and spilling drinks in their lap. I'm pretty sure in the real world that's not how you fall in love with someone. At least not someone that you want to last for a while.

I gave the bag another swing before my phone began to ring, interrupting the loud angry-girl-pop music that was blaring through my headphones.

"Hello?"

_"I wish you would have told me it was going to be this hot in Vegas."_

My eyes almost popped out of their sockets. I pulled the phone from my ear to make sure that I saw the name across the screen correctly. A huge smile then spread across my face as I realized what he had just said.

James was in Vegas.

"You little shit! You told me you weren't coming!" The last time I had talked to him, he told me that he couldn't get the days off of work.

_"Yeah, well... I lied. Surprise!"_

I quickly pulled all of my things together and ran out to my car, throwing my gym bag and towel in the backseat before speeding off towards the airport. It would have been nice of him to tell me beforehand so that I could be there waiting for him to get off the plane with a big, rainbow glitter sign.

He was waiting for me on the curb; multiple suitcases behind him. Leave it to James to bring his entire wardrobe with him as if he was moving in. Not that I would mind. We had shared a bed many nights when we were kids.

As quickly as I could put the car in park, I was out on that sidewalk squeezing him in the tightest hug I could possibly give. I was crying. Sobbing, actually. Every emotion I had been holding back just surfaced as soon as I saw my best friend. The anger that I felt, the regret, the rejection was all mixing together with the joy that I felt that he was actually here. James was here and he was going to make everything better.

He pulled away, keeping me at arms length. "Why are you crying?" He asked, taking his thumbs and wiping the tears from underneath my eyes.

I smiled. "I missed you so much."

"You missed me!? _Please_, you've been gallivanting around the desert having the time of your life. You missed me. Yeah. Right."

"No, I really did." I wrapped my arms around him one more time before we climbed back in the car and headed back to the apartment.

It felt like there was so much to talk about. Even though we were completely caught up in each other's lives, and we talked on the phone, it just wasn't the same as talking in person. We ran through all of his relationship with Alex, how work was, and just Wallman in general. Same ol' same, nothing new. He talked so highly of Alex, showed me pictures of the two of them. I was really happy that he finally found someone that he could be himself with.

Of course I had to give him the run down, once again, on what happened with Dean. I told him I was still mad about it, but that I was mostly over it. I didn't tell him that I still had a key to his apartment, and that I was still watering his dead plants. James would judge me for that. Hell, I would judge me for that.

"Maybe he just-" James sighed. "I don't know. I don't want to speak for the guy. He's straight, I'm gay. Our minds kind of operate differently."

I took it as a bad sign that for once, James didn't know what to say.

Then I told him about Violet, and Kyle, her cute friend. I offered for all of us to hang out, knowing that James would really like their crowd; even texted to Vi to see if she would want to. Violet's group of friends were nothing like Alisha's. Despite the rough first meeting I had with them, they were all very understanding and forgiving. She didn't have a huge group. It mainly just consisted of herself, Kyle, his brother Toby, and Toby's girlfriend Catherine.

He told me that I needed to put myself out there, and to not hold myself back. If I wanted to go hook up with Kyle or whoever else, James said I should.

**Violet White: **_Yes! I would love to meet James! I'll text Kyle and see if he and Toby want to come too! We can go to that new place on the strip!_

It was settled then. I was so excited to have James meet some of my Vegas friends.

When we got back to the apartment, he was in awe. "So this is where you live now? Damn, Cal."

"You should've seen it a month ago." I sighed as I pulled open the fridge. "You hungry? I got an oven-pizza and some B&amp;J's. Or we can call in something?"

I looked up when he didn't reply. James was standing in front of my dad's record player. He lightly ran his index finger on the wooden base. I joined him at his side and noticed that his eyes were glossy, and a tear had fallen onto his cheek.

"Hey." I whispered.

He rested his arm around my shoulders and wiped the tear from his cheek. "I'm okay. I just miss them. Your family was my family. I honestly felt like if I called your mom 'mom' or called your dad 'dad', they wouldn't have cared. Sometimes I think I loved them more than my own parents. Actually, I know I did."

I gave him a side smile. "They loved you, too."

"Remember when I first came out to my mom and she kicked me out of the house. Your mom marched over to my house and we could hear her yelling at my mom all the way down the street. And when my dad left, your dad took me out fishing with him and every weekend after that. He told me that he would always be there for me."

"Hey, no sad stuff. You're here with me now! They wouldn't want us crying over them, anyways."

He tried his hardest to smile.

"I'm going to put on some Guns 'N Roses, throw that pizza in the oven, and we are going to celebrate. And then later we're going to go out so you can explore the strip and get in that real Vegas experience. No touristy shit!"

James nodded, as I queued up the first song on the record. When the guitar solo hit, he was jumping on the couch, doing his best air guitar-headbanging routine. I pulled out my phone and took a short video, until he caught me; the look on his face was priceless.

When it came time for us to start getting ready, we had already tired ourselves out from re-enacting Grease, and now we were going out to some club.

"You're not wearing that." James said, looking over my normal jeans and t-shirt combo. A disgusted frown was plastered on his face.

I missed this so much.

"Why not!?" I snapped back.

"Because, you're not." He immediately began rummaging through my closets, searching for something else that I could wear. "Here."

James through a strapless, black and red pattered dress at me; then my leather jacket and a pair of booted heels.

"Leather jacket? James, we're in Nevada." I replied.

"You'll be wearing it for a total of twenty minutes? Come on. Just change. Now. Thanks."

"You gays are so bossy."

I gave in and changed, though. I had to hand it to him, he did know how to coordinate a good outfit. It was a shame that James had always wanted to be a writer, because he'd do fantastic on Project Runway. Backwoods, country, gay boy turned New York fashion designer. I could see it now.

"See, Callie," he said as I looked at myself in the mirror. "Jeans and t-shirts just aren't your thing."

Violet, Kyle, Toby, and Catherine were already at the club when we arrived. James was getting along with everyone really well. I hadn't seen him this happy in years, and I thought for a moment, _what if he moved here?_ We could find a two bedroom apartment somewhere, or even a house. We could open the bookstore, and he could write in his spare time. It'd be perfect.

"Hello, Ms. Jordan." I heard in my ear, pulling me from my thoughts.

I smiled up at Kyle. "Hi."

"Come dance with me?"

I nodded and followed him out to the dance floor, ignoring the winks and wagging eyebrows from James and Violet. He smelled like crisp, air; the kind that settled over the pine trees after a morning shower in the deep, rustic woods of home. My head rested in the crook of his neck as we swayed to the beat, and his hands roamed my figure. Kyle was the perfect height. He didn't tower over me like Dean did. He wasn't a carved sculpture from God himself. He was just normal. He worked at an outdoor supplies store and shot music videos for local bands in his spare time. He wasn't famous, he wasn't gone three hundred days out of the year, he wasn't Dean.

I liked it.

When the song ended, we headed back to the table we had reserved. I slid into the booth next to James and checked my phone, _totally not_ hoping that I would have a message or missed call from Dean. Instead, there was a missed call from Amanda. I wondered why she would be calling so late, seeing as they were on the East Coast.

"I'll be right back, guys. I have to make a phone call." I told the group. As I scurried off to the bathroom for some privacy, the phone rang again. Amanda's name flashing on the screen once more. "Hey Amanda, is everything okay?"

_"Callie."_ The voice didn't belong to Amanda. My stomach flipped upon hearing him say my name. _"Don't hang up, please."_

"What do you want?" I asked as I tried my hardest to sound angry or annoyed. I was neither of those things. Truth be told, I was glad he was calling. It had been too long since I had heard that honey-coated, husky voice.

He was silent for a moment before he cleared his throat. _"How are you?"_

_Don't let your guard down,_ I thought to myself. "Did you really call me to ask me how I am?"

He sighed. _"I- I don't know, Callie. I just wanted to hear your voice."_

My heart almost stopped, and then skipped a beat or two. "Dean, I have to g-"

_"Wait, Callie, please. I'll be home in a couple days, can I see you?"_ It sounded like he was a step away from begging. The cracks in his voice were enough to make me drop the tough girl act all together. I couldn't do that, though. Not yet.

I faked a snarky laugh. "No. Goodbye, Dean."

It near killed me ending that phone call. After weeks of not talking to him, fooling myself into believing that I hated him, or that I was over him. It took a two minute conversation, or lack there of, to prove otherwise. I wasn't over him. And I certainly didn't hate him. If I was going to be honest with myself, which, let's face it, I never am... I'd go as far as to say that I would never be over him, and that I could never hate him.

Chalk it up to whatever 'you never forget your first love' bullshit, but that was how I felt.

When I got back to the booth, Violet and Kyle were on the dance floor along with Toby and Catherine. Kyle gave me a sweet smile and a wink, and I blushed, turning to face James who had a disappointed look on his face.

"What?" I asked him.

"You're gonna hurt that kid."He said, and I sighed in return. "You're head over heels for Dean, and that's not going to change anytime soon. Don't lead that poor guy on."

I slumped my shoulders and looked back over at Kyle.

Once again, James was right.

* * *

**Raise your hand if you wish Callie would stop being so stubborn!**

**1\. Burn - VersaEmerge**

**2\. Paradise City - Guns 'N Roses**

**3\. Ooh La La - Goldfrapp**

**4\. You Make Me Feel - Cobra Starship feat. Sabi**

**5\. Broken Strings - James Morrison, Nelly Furtado**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged! :)**


	24. I'm Afraid

**Happy Saturday night/Sunday morning I hope you're all having a great day. I owe you guys a few rapid updates (I'm looking at you, my lovely Guest reviewer).**

**Thanks to AliceJericho, Westie86, Mandamirra10, Guest, UntilNeverDawns, DeeMarie426, nattiebroskette, xSamiliciousx, Rossi's Lil Devil, ChelleLew, Khaaaaaaan, MetalMayhem, Sadisticdarkstar, AyeBlaney, IRENELOVE83, lookitsria, Sinistergateslegend, AmbroseFan, and AllyMichelle for reviewing. I love you guys.**

**Also, I'm glad some of you are sticking up for poor Kyle. It warms my heart. **

* * *

James was still asleep next to me. His mouth hung slightly open, and he snored loudly. I was used to it by now; he has snored for years. I smiled at him, reminiscing on the memories that we had made together.

_Someone knocked at the front door. _

_It had to be James, so I stayed where I was, and waited for my mother to let him in. _

_"James! What's wrong, honey?" I could hear her gasp._

_I immediately jumped from my computer chair and bolted down the front stairs. James was standing in the doorway; eyes red and puffy, tears streaming down his face. My mother had her arm around him, leading him to the couch. _

_"What happened? Are you okay?" I asked frantically. This was the first time I had ever seen him cry, and come hell or high water, I would end the person who started this._

_He could barely get out a word as he stuttered over his shaky breaths. "I-I t-told m-my m-mom." He balled his fists and dug them into his eyes. _

_"Told her what, honey?" My mother asked, but I already knew. I tapped her on the shoulder and gave her a look, letting her know without him having to answer. Obviously Mrs. Cooke didn't take the news so well. James most likely didn't want to risk someone else not accepting him. Especially not someone like my mom. "Oh, sweetie." _

_She rubbed his back reassuringly, letting him know that she was there for him._

_"S-she h-hates m-me." He cried. "S-she s-said t-that I- that I c-couldn't come b-back."_

_My mother stood up quickly, asking me to stay here with him, get him a glass of water or a pillow, or whatever he needed. I grabbed a Pudding Pop from the freezer. There was always a box in there for James; they were his favorite. Before I could ask her where she was going, she stormed out the front door, across the lawn, and down the street. _

_I stood at the door, watching as she made a beeline for James' house. He joined me at my side, and I offered him a small smile as he wiped his tears away. _

_Mrs. Cooke answered the door, and it was clear that they were talking. My mother was talking with her hands; she usually did when she was angry. _

_Suddenly we heard, "That is your son, Joyce! It don't matter who he's attracted to! Men, women, blacks, Asians, midgets! You have no right to tell that boy that his kind of love is a sin."_

_Mrs. Cooke was saying something, but I have a feeling she was cut off when my mother screamed, "I don't care what the Bible says! We are all God's children and no matter what, he will love us. If you have no love left for your own son, maybe it's _you_ that's the abomination. You need a reality check, Joyce, it's 2006. James will be staying with us for a while, where he will be accepted for who he is."_

_I looked up at James who was wide-eyed and had a hint of a smile on his face._

_"Your mom is so bad ass." He whispered._

_She was. I admired her strength. God knows I wouldn't have been able to stand up to Mrs. Cooke; she frightened me. _

_When she came up the steps, she gave James a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. "You're always welcome here, honey. We got plenty of love to go around. Isn't that right, Callie?" __I nodded at her. "Speaking of plenty to go around, I made too many pretzel dogs, you kids hungry?"_

_I nudged James in the shoulder as we followed my mother into the kitchen. "Hey, you're my best friend. You know that right?"  
_

_He smiled and bopped me on the nose. "What would I do without you?"_

James had it backwards. What would I do without him? He was the only friend that I had. The only person that I could trust with my life, and know that it would be safe and sound. I had known him since I was in diapers. Out of all the people that I knew, he had been in my life the longest. Twenty-three years. What on Earth would I do without him?

I stood out of the bed and made my way to the shower, plugging my phone into the small speaker that I had. The hot water felt good on my skin, washing off the previous night. Kyle invited James and I over to a small house party. If there was ever a time to tell him that I just wasn't ready for what he was offering, it was last night.

James briefed me on what to say to him, and even though he had told me not to say anything along the lines of 'I'm kind of seeing someone else', 'it's not you it's me', or 'you're a sweet guy', the exact line that I fed Kyle was, "You're a sweet guy, Kyle, but I have feelings for someone else, and I don't want to lead you on and ruin our friendship". Let's just say, the rest of the party was very awkward. At least it was for me.

Kyle did say that if things didn't work out between me and 'that lucky son of a bitch', to just call him, and we could start over again. I appreciated that, because I didn't want to hurt him. I definitely could have, and probably would have if James wasn't there to point out that what I was doing was wrong. There was no point in trying get back at Dean or trying to get over him. It was too soon, that wasn't going to happen.

As I got out of the shower, I heard a knock at the door. I wrapped my towel tightly around me, making sure it wasn't going to go anywhere, and went to answer it; thinking that James was still asleep. However, when I stepped into my bedroom, James wasn't sleeping, or in the bed. Instead he was standing at the door, holding it open.

"Who is it?" I asked, but wished I hadn't when I saw who was standing on the other side of the threshold.

The look on Dean's face screamed that he had clearly misread the situation, as his eyes flickered to me in a towel and then back to James who was in just a t-shirt and boxers.

"Yes?" I asked him, breaking the silence between the three of us. James stood there frozen, not knowing what he was supposed to do.

Dean exhaled sharply and turned back towards his apartment door, muttering something along the lines of 'unbelievable', under his breath. I slammed my door shut in one swift motion and headed back to my bathroom so that I could finish getting ready.

James followed me the whole way, and I knew I was about to be interrogated.

"Callie Beth," He said sternly. "What the hell was that?"

I shrugged as I towel dried my hair. "He's a jackass. That's what that was."

"So we're back to the name calling thing, now?"

My shoulders fell. "James, we've had this conversation a million times."

"Yeah, and the one thing you manage to avoid telling me is why you're so scared. I know you, Cal. You're happy one minute and then you put up these walls and try to convince yourself that it's better that way. Why?"

"I'm not scared."

"Callie, you're scared." He replied. "Just tell me why."

"Because I don't want to lose anyone, okay? I've been alone for forever, surrounded by the best family anyone could ask for and then all of the sudden, they're gone? Just ripped from me? It still feels like it didn't even happen. Like my phone's gonna ring at any minute, and it's gonna be my mom asking me if I want some fuckin' pretzel dogs. You're all I have, James. What if I lost you? What if I lost Dean? What if we got married, had kids, and he gets in an accident on the road? I can't do that again, James. I won't be able to handle it."

I was yelling now. He frowned.

"I've thought about it a lot of the past few weeks." I continued. "At first I wanted to know why he slept with someone else, and why he couldn't just be honest with me about it. And then I wanted to figure out what I meant to him, and if he really cared about me or was just using me to claim another naive girl's virginity. And then I wanted to get back at him. I hated him. I was so angry that I wanted to use poor Kyle, the sweetest guy in the world, to get over him and show him that I don't need a piece of trash like him in my life. And then I realized that I could never hate him, and that's when I knew that it's probably just better for everyone if we just leave things the way they are. It's not like he's ever home, anyways."

"You can't live life that way." James sighed. "You can't live your life in fear of losing someone. That's part of the deal. Whether it be a simple break up, or the inevitable death, you're gonna lose people. You can't stop it. It'll hurt like hell, and you can try and run from it until you think you have gotten far enough away, but that pain is going to be with you forever."

I sat down on the toilet and put my head in my hands.

He sighed and knelt in front of me."You need to fix this. The waiting game isn't going to help anyone. He cares about you, Callie. He'd be stupid not to. You're the most amazing person I've ever met. You deserve to be happy, you really do. This guy obviously makes you happy. If he didn't and you didn't care about him, you wouldn't be putting up these walls. I'm leaving tonight-"

"You don't have to. You could stay." I had been thinking about it for the past four days, and I didn't want anything more in the world than to have my best friend back. I needed him. "Please, move out here with me."

James gave me a sad, side smile. "You know I wish I could. This is where you live now, and Vegas is no place for me. I'm destined for rainy, moody Portland. Live in a cabin in the woods somewhere and do nothing but write."

I finished getting ready while James packed up his suitcases. Violet and Kyle wanted to say goodbye to James before he left, so the four of us were all going out for an early dinner. James really loved Violet. He told me to stick close to her because he could tell she was a good person, and would take care of me. He fit right in here, and it killed me to know that he was leaving. His visit had gone by so quickly. I felt like we didn't get to do all of the things I wanted to do. Who knows when I'd see him again.

"Do you think it'll be weird seeing Kyle again after last night?" James asked as we walked to the car.

"I don't think so. I hope not, at least. I'd like to be friends with him. After all, I'm going to need someone to replace you."

"Ha ha ha." He said sarcastically.

Violet and Kyle were already at the restaurant. Kyle smiled and stood up to give me a quick hug, whispering in my ear that I looked beautiful. I thanked him, and slid in next to him. James and I could never eat on the same side of the table. He was always adamant about sitting on the inside, and he was left handed; our elbows always bumped.

"I'm really going to miss you guys." James said after we had finished eating our meal. "I feel like I've made life long friends here."

"You have!" Violet replied, laying her head on his shoulder.

"When are you coming back?" Kyle asked.

James shrugged. "Don't know, hopefully sooner rather than later. Maybe Thanksgiving or Christmas. Callie and I haven't spent either holiday without each other since we were born. Just being apart on her birthday was weird."

I smiled at him. "If you just moved here, it wouldn't be a problem."

He rolled his eyes.

"Well next time you come, you have to bring Alex!" Violet smiled brightly.

"I will, I promise."

After dinner, it was off to the airport. James had to drive because I was crying too much, and because I'd probably turn around in the middle of the street and take him back to my apartment. I wasn't above kidnapping my own best friend. I wasn't allowed to go past the ticket gate. We stood among the hundreds of tourists, in their 'I heart Vegas' t-shirts that they probably got at some airport gift shop.

We lingered around some of those gift shops, as he waited until the very last minute to leave.

"You have everything you need, right? I asked him. "Ticket, phone charger, an aching feeling of regret that makes you want to stay?" He smiled down at me and shook his head. "I'm going to miss you."

"Now you know how I felt when you left home. It sucks doesn't it?" He wiped the tears from my eyes. "You'll be fine. You have Vi and Kyle, and Dean. Talk to him, Cal." James ducked his head to give me a kiss on my forehead. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

I half expected him to turn around and come back, but he didn't. He hoisted his bags up over his shoulder and kept walking until I couldn't see him any longer. I stood there for a few more minutes, just waiting. Just in case. When I was certain he wasn't going to change his mind, I headed back out to the parking lot. Sure, Thanksgiving wasn't that far away, and neither was Christmas, but it wasn't soon enough. Having him here just made me realize how much I really missed him. I mean, he was the only family I had left.

When I got back to my apartment, I lingered by the door for just a second. I looked down the hall at Dean's door, contemplating the idea of going to talk to him. I wanted to, and soon before he left again.

_I'll do it tomorrow,_ I promised myself.

* * *

**Welcome back, Dean. We missed you while you were gone.**

**Also, that last scene with James was a killer to write.**

**1\. Tell Mama - The Civil Wars**

**2\. Where You Live Now - Loudlike**

**3\. Wild Horses - The Rolling Stones**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	25. Hold On To Me

**Another update! You guys will like this one, I promise.**

**A big thanks to all of you who took the time out of your day to send me a little review. I love you all; Sinistergateslegend, lookitsria, nattiebroskette, AliceJericho, and AyeBlaney. You guys are the best.**

* * *

Two hours of sleep.

After I dropped James off at the airport, I came home and made myself dinner, and caught up on The Mindy Project. I must have fallen asleep, because I woke up two hours later. It was still early. I shut off the TV and sent James a quick message, letting him know to call or text whenever he touched down in Tennessee. I was only a little worried, and kept repeating to myself that everything was going to be fine and he'd land safely.

My legs hung over the foot of the bed.

I thought for a moment about what I was going to do with my night. I wasn't tired anymore, I was sick of reading and watching TV, and my apartment felt tragically empty now that James was gone. I stood up and made my way to the kitchen, rummaging through my cupboards, looking for something to munch on. Nothing seemed to catch my attention, though.

I caught a glimpse of my front door as I headed back towards my bedroom. I would've thought that Dean would have tried to come talk to me by now, but I hadn't seen him since earlier.

_Talk to him, _I heard James' voice in the back of my head.

I trudged into the bathroom, making sure I didn't have eyeliner and mascara lines all over my face; I totally did. After taking a wet washrag to my face, I stared at my reflection in the mirror; what in the world did Dean or anyone see in me?

_This can wait until tomorrow, _I told myself as I stood outside his door. It couldn't. What if he left tomorrow morning while I was sleeping? Another month of pretending to be mad, and snarky comments, and two minute phone calls. I couldn't keep that up.

My fist hit the door a few times, and a part of me hoped that he wasn't even home. As soon as I heard his heavy footsteps on the other side, I wanted to make a bolt for the elevator or my apartment, or something.

He looked less than thrilled to see me when he swung the door open. I, on the other hand, felt my heart quicken. He looked good; grey sweats, long sleeved t-shirt that fitted his arms beautifully, and a scruffy face. I could feel my hands itching to wrap themselves around his neck, but I quickly squashed the feeling.

"You know that guy you saw today? That was James." I didn't know what else to say. "You would have known that if you weren't being such an assho-"

I was cut short when he took one step forward and closed the space between us, ducking his head to meet my lips. For a split second I wanted him to whisk me away to his bedroom, where we could just fuck all of our problems away and forget that anything ever happened. But I was here because there was a problem that needed to be fixed, and it wasn't just going to be forgotten or go away by having some make up sex.

My hands pushed his chest, slowly easing him away from my lips.

"Don't." He whispered softly.

"I have to." I replied even softer.

I took a step around him into his dimly lit living room, and heard the door click shut behind me. Dean grabbed my hand and pulled me down on the couch next to him. As I thought of everything I had wanted to say to him, he laced his fingers with mine and kissed the tips of my fingers.

"Stop that, I can't think." I said, pulling my hand from his. "Why didn't you tell me what you told Seth and Roman?"

Dean sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know, Callie."

"You can't say 'I don't know', that's not an answer." I replied.

He sighed again. "I didn't want you to take it the wrong way. I didn't want to say 'Callie, we're having too much sex' or 'can we not have sex tonight', because I felt like you would think I meant something like 'I don't want to have sex with you ever again', because I do." He scratched the back of his neck. "I feel like an asshole, okay? I'm sorry. Sometimes I do stupid shit."

"Like sleep with someone else a few days after we have a fight?" I asked.

"I made a mistake. I make a lot of them. I don't know how to deal with things, and before I met you that was how I always dealt with my problems. I'd go find some random woman, get drunk, and take my mind off of whatever was bothering me." He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know what to tell you other than I'm sorry and I fuckin' care about you more than I want to admit. I'm not a relationship guy. I never have been. I think my longest relationship was just under a couple months. I have no idea what I'm doing here, but I want to do it with you. I don't want you to be with anyone else, just me."

I let his words sink in, ruminating on every word. "Dean-"

"I know that I hurt you. Trust me, Callie, I never intended to. I don't think, sometimes." He paused. "And I know that you're scared. You're afraid of getting close to someone because you don't want to lose them. But you want to be with me, just as much as I want to be with you, and I think that you just need to take a chance."

How could I argue with him? He was right. I did want to be with him, and I believed him when he said that he wanted to be with me. There was nothing left to say. I simply nodded my head, and moved to straddle his waist. My lips met his in a delicate kiss, as every feeling I had been holding back came out front and center.

"For the record," he said against my lips. "I wasn't using you to claim your 'naive girl virginity'. I liked you way before that ever happened."

"You heard my conversation with James?" I asked, looking deep into those beautiful eyes.

"Thin walls, remember? He seems like a cool kid. He definitely cares about you, and he's in my corner, so I like him. When's he coming back?"

I shook my head and pressed a finger to his lips. "I don't want to talk."

I replaced my finger with my lips, and Dean stood up off of the couch, holding me tightly to him. No words needed to be said for what was going to happen next. He laid me down on his bed as softly as he could, and ran his hands up my sides underneath my tank top. His hands were cold, but his lips were warm against my neck. He pulled the shirt over my head and tossed it on the floor.

My shorts were off in seconds.

Dean just watched me for a second. I bit my lip a little nervously, wondering why he was stopping. I hadn't felt him in months. Even though I wanted that more than anything right now, if he decided that he wanted to savor this moment in another way, I would respect that. He dropped his head to the side, and teased his index finger around one of my nipples; hardening it under his touch.

"What?" I asked him, not meaning to sound as whiny as I did.

He had that look in his eyes again. I could see the lust and desire; but I felt like behind that look, there may have been admiration and possibly love. Dean shook his head, but his eyes never left mine. Not even when his hands began to trace lines down my stomach, stopping just above the elastic band of my underwear. I lifted my hips, allowing him to slide the fabric down my thighs.

His lips were on mine again in an instant, and they moved together so beautifully. My nails dug into his biceps. He had one hand squeezing my breasts, and the other rested on my hip. I arched my back. My body wasn't able to control how much it missed the feeling of him. His warm skin bearing down on mine and it felt like heaven.

Dean pulled his hand from my hip and began to tease my pussy. He let out a low moan upon feeling how wet I was for him already. My eyes rolled back, as a whimper escaped my lips. I placed my hand on his, guiding it, rubbing circles around my clit. He slid in a finger, and then two, pulling his mouth away from me to watch the way my body reacted to him. His hand left my breast and lightly pushed down on my throat, holding me in place as he finger-fucked me.

I began bucking my hips to his motions, and he knew I was close. He removed his fingers, hurriedly sliding them into his mouth, before wetting the tip of his cock. He held my legs together, holding them up in the air. I couldn't see it, but I could feel the tip of his cock pressing against my entrance. The sensation made my heart race. I watched him watching me as I pinched and pulled at my hard nipples, waiting for him to finally bury himself inside of me.

He didn't take his time. Dean immediately began moving his hips quickly into mine, holding onto my legs tightly with each thrust. My breasts bounced with the rhythm. I grasped on to them, squeezing them tightly as Dean quickened the pace. He let go of my legs, letting them fall to either side of him, and replaced his mouth on my lips.

His hands gripped the sheets beneath me. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him closer to me.

"Fuck, Callie." He moaned.

Hearing him say my name sparked a hot feeling in my core, and I knew I was headed for the edge once more. He pulled at my earlobe with his teeth, sucking on it lightly. His breath tickled and I resisted the urge to giggle, instead I bit down on his shoulder. He let out another deep groan and slowed down his movements to a much deeper fuck. With each slow thrust, I could feel him rubbing against my cervix. I cursed his name, clawing at his skin. It was that intense, pleasurable pain that I had missed so much.

My breath was heavy. I pressed my mouth into his shoulder, causing it to muffle my loud moans. I could feel my hair sticking to the sweat on my forehead. It was a cold sweat; the overhead fan sent a cool breeze over our bodies, only adding to the many different sensations I was feeling. I sucked at Dean's collarbone as his body moved over mine. His arms began to shake, causing him to drop down to his elbows, and wrap his arms around me completely.

Having him this close, having him in my arms, I could never let him go.

"Cum for me, Callie."

I tried to say 'yes', but it only sounded like another loud moan. He didn't need to say another word as I let myself go. I felt like a balloon that had been filled with too much water and had finally burst.

"Fuck!" He growled, picking up his speed for the few seconds he had before he hit his climax.

He slowed down drastically, riding out his pleasure. My legs shook as the wave fizzled down to my curled toes. Our chests were heaving as we tried to catch our breath. A thick smell of sex and sweat and that vanilla candle he was burning filled the room. I smiled up at him, he was wrapping the sheets around his waist.

Dean let out a deep breath and then smiled at me. I went to pull the sheet over my shivering, naked frame, but he stopped me. I looked at him, clearly confused.

"I'm taking a mental picture."

I rolled my eyes and pulled the sheet over me anyways, turning on my side. He laid beside me, pulling me closer to him. I laced his fingers with mine, silently sending out a prayer that it would be like this from now on; no arguments, no silent treatment, no drama. Make up sex is great, but I never wanted to have to have it again.

Dean pressed his lips to my shoulder. "You're not going to lose me, Callie. I'm not going anywhere. Not unless you tell me to."

I smiled, though he couldn't see it. "You won't have to worry about that."

* * *

**I feel like I haven't written smut in a while, so here you go.**

**A lot of you were on the right track by saying that if it was you, you would have forgiven him a long time ago. I feel like a lot of relationships are like that. We know we shouldn't, but we do anyways. And Callie has so many reservations, and she's so young, and doesn't know what she's doing, but she does know that she wants Dean. She can't deny that. No matter how thick her stubborn streak is, she needs him.**

**1\. Your Love - Fay Wolf**

**2\. Unsteady - X Ambassadors****

**Reviews are always appreciated and encouraged!**

**PS: The first chapter of 'Bored Of Your Love' feat. Seth Rollins will be posted along with the next update. I'm really excited about it, it's nothing like I've ever written before.**


	26. Not Again

**For those of you who asked, I don't write ahead. I write everything on the spot. I like doing it that way because my ideas change constantly, and if I write ahead, then I can't really go back and change it. So, I do it all on the spot. That's why it takes a little while for an update sometimes.**

**Thanks to the lovely reviewers (we've passed 300, I can't believe it); 88Jade88, AliceJericho, ChelleLew, UntilNeverDawns, MetalMayhem, SweetHigh, xSamiliciousx, Guest(s), nattiebroskette, Rossi's Lil Devil, DeeMarie426, Sinistergateslegend, NV1864, ph0biafied, IRENELOVE86, 00redvst, AmbroseFan, Shield316, kitkat1488, and the awesome Mandamirra10. **

**This update is sponsored by grape Gatorade and no sleep. Enjoy!**

* * *

"You're gonna have to come out eventually!"

"No, never! You'll never get me alive!"

"So you're just gonna stay here in bed? You don't want pancakes?"

I slowly peaked out of the covers. Dean was sitting cross legged in the middle of the bed, looking directly at me. He had just tried to tickle me to death, I wasn't sure if I could trust him yet. He could have been using breakfast as a coaxing method, knowing that pancakes were my weakness.

"Pancakes?" I asked, slowly puling the covers down.

He gave me this devilish smile that made me think twice about uncovering myself. "Hot, steaming, delicious pancakes smothered in melted butter and gooey syrup. What'dya you say?"

"I guess that sounds good." I faked.

"You guess?" He asked as he crawled over to me, pinning my hands above me head. "Give me a kiss."

I pulled my bottom lip between my teeth, trying to hide the smile tugging at the corners of my mouth. I couldn't keep from it for too long, not with the way Dean was looking at me. He made me feel like nothing could touch me. As long as I was with him, everything would be okay. Maybe that was a little over-the-top, I mean, he was still a jerk. But he was _my_ jerk, and he made so happy.

He ducked his head to meet me for a quick kiss that was quickly broken because I was smiling too much.

"What?" He asked against my lips.

I shook my head and freed my hands from his grasp, snaking them through his hair before pulling him back down for another kiss. "I like you." I whispered breathlessly.

"You're cute." He replied, kissing the tip of my nose.

Dean slid off the side of the bed and began to gather our clothes that had been thrown around the room last night. He tossed my underwear and bra at me, along with my shorts and tank top before disappearing out into the front room. I quickly got dressed and followed him, perching myself on the kitchen counter as he got out all the ingredients he needed to make pancakes.

"Have you ever done this before?" I asked him after noticing the confused look on his face as he stared at the directions on the back of the Bisquick box. He shushed me and then went back to looking confused. "I can help you, ya know."

I reached for the box, even though I probably wouldn't have been any less confused. He swatted my hands away immediately. "I can do this. I'm the man of the house. These directions don't intimidate me."

"Okay Mr. Ambrose, while you're busy figuring out how you're going to burn our breakfast, I'm going to go take a shower."

I hopped down from the counter and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. He just nodded at me, still determined on figuring out those directions. I shook my head at him, hoping that when I came back, his kitchen wouldn't be on fire.

I retreated back to my own apartment and hopped in the shower. It wasn't long before the smell of Dean's cooking made it's way to my nose. I quickly finished rinsing the conditioner out of my hair and got out, wrapping my towel tightly around my body. James had texted me, apologizing for not calling me sooner, and letting me know he had landed safely. I sent him a quick text back, letting him know I missed him and that I put my big girl pants on and talked to Dean.

Thinking back on it, I know I should have followed his advice sooner. Holding out on Dean didn't help anything, but I didn't want him thinking that I was just going to up and forgive him, and let him get the idea that he could do whatever he wanted and I wouldn't be mad.

It didn't matter anymore, anyways. The silent treatment was over, and we were back to where we needed to be. There might have been some amazing sex in there, too. Which made me think, the whole reason we started arguing in the first place was because we were 'having too much sex', and the first thing we do when we start talking again is have more sex?

Whatever. It doesn't matter. I'm happy. I'm not going to dwell on it.

"The kitchen's not on fire," I said as I joined Dean back at the stove. "That's a good sign."

"Ye of little faith." He replied as he flipped a pancake in the air before putting it on the plate with the others. The island had already been set. He had placed silverware and napkins on the counter top. "Now we feast!"

"This is very romantic." I noted. "Would have been better if you brought it to me in bed."

"If I had done that, you would've never gotten up." He wasn't lying. "And I would've wanted to stay in bed with you, but I have to go to the gym today. I didn't go yesterday."

I pouted. "What am I going to do?"

He shrugged. "You could come with me."

"No thanks." I replied scrunching my face up. "I'll stay here and do some laundry or something. Do you have anything that needs to be washed?"

He nodded, not wanting to talk with food in his mouth. "Yeah, that."

I turned to the direction he was pointing to see his suitcase. "Your smelly ring gear? Gross." I pouted at him. "It's probably going to take me like six washes to get the sweat stains out."

"Well you better get started. I do leave tomorrow, after all."

"Don't remind me." A frown tugged at my lips.

"Hey," I looked up at him to see him smiling. "I'll be back before you know it."

After he left for the gym, I immediately got started on the laundry I had been putting off for days. I made the bed, I did the dishes, I called James and caught up with him. Just when I sat down to crack open a book and do some reading, someone knocked at the door.

I looked at the clock, noticing that it was almost three. Dean wasn't due back for at least another hour.

"Hold on," I called out after the person knocked again.

My breath hitched when I saw the person on the other side of the door through the peephole. She was looking straight at me, as if she knew it was me, and not Dean that would be answering the door. Her plastic, bleached smile made me want to throw up. I was half tempted to not answer, but my curiosity got the best of me. Why was she here? What did she want?

"Can I help you?" I asked after I swung the door open.

Her conniving smile never faltered. She looked over my shoulder at the apartment, obviously looking for Dean. "Yeah, is Dean here?"

"He's not, sorry." I replied quickly, moving to close the door in her face.

She stopped me, though. Placing her hand against the wood. "It's not going to last, you know? He doesn't settle down, he's not going to propose to you. He's going to use you until he gets bored and then he's going to move on. That's what he did to me. I thought it was really special, you know? And then you came along. I'm just warning you. Woman to woman, I'd leave while I have the chance. Save yourself the heartbreak."

I held back a chuckle. "Is that what you came here for? To give me some advice?"

"No, actually I came to return this." She handed me a very familiar black, leather jacket. "He left it at my place a couple nights ago." My stomach dropped and my cheeks flushed. A couple nights ago? The woman took note of my expression and smiled ever wider. "Like I said, save yourself the heartbreak."

Without another word, she turned on her heel and bounced down the hallway towards the elevator, leaving me standing in the threshold holding Dean's jacket. A couple days ago? Meaning, he saw her when he came home? I was confused. I wasn't sure what I was feeling.

I closed the door and turned around, folding Dean's jacket in my hands before setting it on his kitchen counter. I grabbed a pen and a piece of paper, thinking of writing him a sarcastic note and leaving it next to the jacket where he'd see it. But my hand shook too much for me to write anything legible. Instead I pulled my phone out of my pocket and dialed his number.

_"Hey Sweet Cheeks, what's up?"_

"Nothing." I replied. "Enjoying the gym?"

_"No one really enjoys the gym. You up for a movie when I get back?"_

I sucked in a deep breath, trying to find the words to say next without sounding like a controlling, jealous bitch. "No, but you might want to ask your little, blonde friend that you were with a couple nights ago. She stopped by today, dropped off your jacket that you left at her place. I'm sure she'd _love_ to go to dinner with you."

He sighed into the phone. "Callie, can we just talk about this when I get back? Please?"

"I'm done talking. It obviously doesn't do any good."

I ended the call abruptly, grabbing my things and heading out of his apartment. Just when I thought things were headed in the right direction, something comes along and just fucks everything up.

Violet wasn't answering, she was probably at work. I called Kyle, but he was busy. I threw my phone towards the end of my bed and fell back on to my pillow. The situation felt like it had become five times worse because I had no one to escape to. I was too exhausted to go work out, I had already cleaned everything, my friends were busy.

_This is bullshit, _I thought to myself.

I could hear my phone vibrating at the foot of the bed, but I ignored it. I didn't care who it was; Violet, Kyle, Dean... I suddenly wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone. I pulled the covers over my shoulders and placed a pillow over top of my head to keep my eyes shielded from the sunlight.

I just wanted to go to sleep and forget about all of this.

_"Callie!" _I was jolted from my nap after hearing someone calling my name, followed by a few loud bangs.

Ignoring it, I turned over on my other side, nestling myself further into my pillows.

_"Callie, please open the door."_ He wasn't going away.

"What do you want?" I called from my bedroom, not wanting to get up. It's funny how naps made you even more tired than you were before you took one.

_"For you to hear me out, please. It's not what you think."_

I groaned loudly as I pulled myself out of bed. It wasn't even two hours later, and I felt like I had slept the entire night away. Dean stood on the other side of the door, hair damp with sweat, still in his basketball shorts and black beater.

I crossed my arms over my chest and sighed, letting out all the air I had in my lungs. "I don't want to talk to you. Please just leave me alone right now, Dean. All that I can see when I look at you is you fucking someone else and it just really irritates me."

"I didn't go over to her house to fuck her, Callie." He said. I rolled my eyes in response. "If you would just listen to me, and let me explain, and stop being so goddamn stubborn. I'm not leaving for another month with you giving me the cold shoulder, fuck that."

He slid by me and moved across the room, sitting on my couch. I shut the door, but stayed where I was standing.

"I went over to her house to tell her that I didn't want to see her anymore." He began.

The urge to laugh was hard to fight. I can't believe he expected me to believe this.

"I've known her, Whitney, for years. Ever since I moved to Vegas. We were good friends and yeah we fucked on and off, but she's really manipulative and mean, and I stopped wanting to be around her. Sometimes I'd call her up when I got back from a tour and we'd hook up, and then she'd leave, you know? I never really felt anything there, it was purely a sex thing. When she heard that I was with someone else, you, she kind of freaked out and wouldn't stop texting me or calling me. Yeah I hooked up with her that one time after we had that first fight, but then when I got back home, I went to her and I told her that I didn't want to see her anymore, and that she needed to leave me alone and let it go."

I shifted uncomfortably. "You were there long enough to take off your jacket?"

"Well yeah, I sat down and talked to her for a bit."

"I don't know, Dean."

He ran a hand through his hair and let out a sigh. "What? You don't believe me."

"It's not that." I replied, crossing the room to sit next to him. "It's that she comes over here, and she tells me that this thing we have isn't going to last. Like, she tells me you're just going to use me, and then get bored and dump me, just like you did to her. And then she hands me your jacket like she's basically screaming at me that you two fucked and it's no secret. Telling me that I need to save myself the heartbreak. Like, I get that you've done this a million times, but this is new to me, and you're the only one right now. I haven't been with twenty different guys. It's just you. And when shit like that- Whitney or whatever- when shit like that happens, it floors me. I don't know what to do."

"What did I tell you last night?" He asked.

"That you weren't going anywhere, but-"

"But nothing." He interrupted. "I'm not going anywhere. If I have to tell you a million times, that's what I'll do. There's no getting rid of me." I went to say something, but he cut in once again. "I don't think you understand how much I care about you, Callie. Stop fighting it, dammit."

"Can you go take a shower?" I asked.

He must've been expecting me to continue fighting him on this, because he went to interrupt me once more, but snapped his mouth shut instead. "What?"

"Go take a shower so that when I kiss you I don't feel gross about it."

He smiled and stood up, making his way over to the door. "You're welcome to join me if you want."

"I'm okay, but if you would hurry up, that'd be great. I think you mentioned something earlier about going to see a movie?"

He nodded and smiled, blowing me a kiss before leaving.

* * *

**When I first started this, I had it end with them fighting again. But I figured it would better if they made up. I don't want to torture you guys any more than I have to.**

**1\. Perth (Teen Daze Remix****) - Bon Iver**

**2\. Repeat Pleasure - How To Dress Well**

**3\. Daydreaming - Dark Dark Dark**

**I'm going to hold off posting that Seth story. I don't think it's perfected yet, and I want to make sure it's totally perfect before I give it to you guys. Hope you understand.**


	27. Late

**Thanks to the reviewers; Guest, UntilNeverDawns, nattiebroskette, ChelleLew, lookitsria, DeeMarie426, Rossi's Lil Devil, AyeBlaney, AliceJericho, MetalMayhem, IRENELOVE83, xSamiliciousx, and Mandamirra10. **

**The first two chapters of Bored Of Your Love feat. Seth Rollins has been posted. I see a couple of you have already made your way over there and checked it out. If you haven't I suggest doing so. The story is set a few months before this one starts and I'm really excited about it. Even if you're not a huge Seth fan, just give it a read. Try something new. You might like it. As far as updating, I'm probably going to update that one and then this one, and so on.**

* * *

It had already been one week.

I would say that I was used to Dean being gone, but it really only got harder with each passing day. He had made the promise to call me each chance he got. At first it was maybe twenty minutes a day, and then ten, and then five. It didn't take long at all for our phone calls to become texts here and there. It had only been a week, that wasn't even close to a dent in a two month stint.

The good news was that the receptionist at Violet's hair salon had to quit because she was moving for school, so Violet offered me the job. Well, she more showed up on my doorstep with an Edible Arrangement, some Reese's Pieces, and an Ella Fitzgerald record. Then she said, 'my receptionist quit so I need you to come work for me'. I never saw myself working at a desk, especially not at a hair salon. But Violet needed me, and she was the only friend I had here; I wasn't going to let her down.

If it hadn't been for her, I would've spent the next seven weeks infusing myself with the couch. Probably pigging out on some really unhealthy food, and watching TV, just like old times.

"Why are you so emotional?" She asked me as we sat down on a picnic table outside of a Tropical Smoothie on our lunch break. "He's going to come back, I mean... He's left before, so why is it hitting you so hard now?"

"I don't know, I guess I feel like because we were arguing, it feels like he's been gone a lot longer." I shrugged, pushing away my lunch.

"You're not hungry?" Violet asked, pulling a piece of chicken from her sandwich before popping it into her mouth. It was the smell of the Swiss cheese that had turned me off of the sandwich in front of me. I was so sure I wanted Tropical Smoothie, too.

"No, I'm starving. I'm just not in the mood for flat breads."

"What are you in the mood for?" She asked with a mouthful.

I shrugged again. "I've been craving chili fries lately."

She made a face. "Hey, you want to come out with me and Kyle later?" I didn't really want to. "It'll be good for you to get out. Time flies when you're having fun, you know?"

I doubt I'd be having fun, but when it came to Violet, I couldn't say no. It wasn't that she'd make me feel bad about it later, it was that she was just so sweet, that saying no to her physically made my heart hurt. "Sure."

The rest of the day dragged on. It was hard for me to be costumer service oriented when I kept my eyes glued on my phone screen, waiting for it to pop up with a message. I knew that if I could just focus on the task at hand, my day would probably move along a lot quicker, but the want to talk to him was so great that it was hard to concentrate on anything else. I had already mis-scheduled three people because I was so distracted. If I wasn't careful, I'd end up getting fired after my third day.

The more time that passed, the more I thought it _would_ be a good idea for me to go out; get my mind off of him for a minute. Maybe get completely trashed and leave him a couple whiny voicemails.

When I finally got off, I got home and took a quick shower; threw on an easy dress and heels. Nothing too flamboyant, I didn't want to be uncomfortable in case I had to stay the night at someone's house because I couldn't make it home. I got really excited when my phone vibrated, but it was only Violet texting me the directions to her house. I sighed loudly and tossed my phone back on the bed and finished my make up.

Violet's house was a petite cottage on the outskirts of town, about thirty minutes out. It was quiet, and her neighbors were at least a half mile down on either side of her. There were about fifty wind chimes hanging in the front of her house, and permanent Halloween decorations. I knocked on the door a few times until Kyle answered. His jaw dropped, eyes roaming my figure from head to toe.

"What?" I asked.

"Violet didn't tell you?" He replied.

"Tell me what?"

Without answering, he offered for me to come in and disappeared off down the hallway. It smelled like cupcakes and apple cider, my stomach churned immediately. Tiny, orange lights lined the walls along with perfectly aligned polaroid pictures of her life. They seemed to be in a timeline from when she was little, moving along towards the present. There were a bunch with Kyle and Toby, and her cats, and another man who I'd never met before. I assumed it was her long-time boyfriend. In the living room, she had floor-to-ceiling bookshelves filled with all kinds of books and movies; mostly slasher flicks and old Disney films. The most fascinating item, though, was the gramophone that sat on a corner table by the window.

When I came to the kitchen, Violet was messy haired and wearing a bright pink apron, spreading frosting on a fresh batch of cupcakes. She was no where near dressed to go out, neither was Kyle in his sweats.

"I probably should have mentioned that we weren't going out _out. _Thursday night is Family Game Night. It's kind of a tradition." She said upon seeing my attire. "It's totally fine though, I've got some clothes you can wear."

"So we're not going out to get trashed?" I asked feeling a little let down.

She shook her head. "I tried inviting you to Wine Night Wednesday last night, but you said you were busy." I totally wasn't busy. Unless you count crying over Ryan Gosling's beard in The Notebook as busy.

"Maybe if you would have mentioned it was Wine Night Wednesday." I mumbled under my breath as I surveyed her kitchen and all the homemade pottery that decorated it. Her hours definitely spoke volumes about her personality.

"We do have cupcakes and hot cider!" She said, trying to make the situation better. "I'm really sorry I should have told you."

"It's fine." I replied, but my tone made it sound like it wasn't fine. She gave me a look. "No, really. I'm sorry, Vi. You know I've been in a mood all day." I really didn't know what was wrong with me today. It wasn't like me to be so down.

It was probably best that I didn't get drunk, because I would have probably done something I regretted. Besides, I was having fun playing The Game of Life, and Yahtzee, and Sorry. I might have lost every time, but it was fun being competitive among friends. Violet had her camera out, snapping polaroids of us. After she shook them out, she'd run and post them up on her picture wall. Then after we got bored of games, we ordered a pizza and all cuddled up on the couch for a movie. Violet, of course, settled on something scary. I practically devoured the pizza after barely eating all day.

I must have fallen asleep during the middle of it, because I woke up with Violet's head resting on my hip and Kyle's legs were stretched out over Violet. The title menu on the DVD was repeating. It was still late or either very, very early. I stood up as gently as I could without waking anyone, but as soon as I came to my feet, I was taken over by the sudden urge to throw up. I darted to the bathroom, barely making it to the toilet.

"Cal, are you okay?" Violet rushed into the bathroom. I groaned in agony as I hugged the toilet, emptying the contents of my stomach. Let's just say pizza, cupcakes, and cider didn't taste as good coming up as they did going down.

"Yeah," I replied as I wiped the tears from my cheeks and my mouth. "It must've been something I ate."

"Here," She said, handing me a paper cup with water to rinse my mouth along with a cap full of mouthwash. The harsh smell of mint almost made me nauseous again.

"I should probably get going." I told her.

"Are you sure?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Thanks for inviting me, I really did have a good time. Sorry I wasn't more fun. I don't know what's going on with me." I was almost never sick. Even growing up, it was always James who got the flu and not me. That boy had an immune system like a child in preschool.

She walked me to the front door. "Well if you can't work tomorrow, let me know."

I nodded, and Violet spread her arms and invited me in for a hug, but I declined. "I'm sure it's just a 24 hour bug, but if I'm sick, I don't want you to catch it."

She waved goodbye as I backed out of her driveway. The drive back to my apartment felt like it was three hours long. I was exhausted, nearly falling asleep at the wheel every few minutes. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and dialed Dean's number, it went to voicemail after a few rings. I glanced at the time, he was probably on the road. Probably sleeping. I shrugged it off. He couldn't talk all the time, but it was a little alarming that today was the first day I hadn't heard a word from him.

I went straight to his apartment, stripped out of the clothes Violet had let me borrow, and pulled on one of his t-shirts. My stomach growled loudly, but I was afraid to eat anything for fear that I'd throw up. It growled again, practically pulling me into the kitchen. Dean didn't have much to choose from. A box of Cheerios and some Doritos. I settled on the healthier choice, pouring myself a bowl of cereal. Once I was finished I crawled back in Dean's bed and set my alarm for work the next morning. Hopefully I'd be feeling a little better by then.

The next morning, I woke up with an awful headache. It felt like I hadn't gotten a single minute of sleep, and my head was throbbing. I swung my feet over the edge of the bed and stood up, but once again, I was taken over by a wave of nausea. I made a beeline to the bathroom, my stomach emptying itself again. The heaving of being sick made my head hurt even worse. I texted Violet, letting her know that I was still sick and couldn't keep anything down, but that I was still going to come in for work. If it got any worse, I'd just come home.

"How are you feeling?" She asked me when I got there.

"Like the plague. I'm tired, I have an awful headache, and I can't eat without throwing up. It's awful. I've never been sick like this. I think I've only been sick once in my life, and that's when I got this fever when I was a kid."

"Have you taken anything? I've got some Advil."

"I already took some Aleve. If nothing else, it'll take my headache away."

"Have you called Dean or talked to him?" She asked.

I shook my head. "I tried calling him last night, but he didn't answer. I figured when I woke up this morning there'd be a missed call or a text or something, but there wasn't. He's busy, I probably shouldn't be bothering him anyways. I'll be fine. I don't really want to think about it."

She nodded and dropped the subject.

Throughout the rest of the day, I ended up feeling a little bit better than I started out. My headache didn't go away, but it did become tolerable. I was able to eat a salad without getting sick. I put all my energy into making sure I was booking the right appointments and that the costumers were happy, the day ended up going by a lot faster than yesterday.

"Hey Cal?" Violet asked, coming up behind me. She knelt down to lower herself to me and lowered her voice. "You wouldn't happen to have a tampon, would you?"

"No, I don-" I stopped short, a sudden realization coming over me.

"You okay?" She asked, her eyebrows pulled together in confusion.

_No no no no no no no no no, _I thought to myself. That couldn't possibly be right. I had never had a late period in my life that couldn't be explained by a change in diet or exercise, and even then they were only a day or two late, and I wasn't sexually active then, so I couldn't have possibly been... No, I couldn't be. Two months late? Give or take a few days. That couldn't be right, diet and exercise couldn't explain that.

I couldn't be pregnant. Well, I could. I most certainly could. It's not like Dean and I used any form of protection. I never counted on ever losing my virginity, so of course I wasn't on the pill. I held my hands in my head, cursing myself under my breath. _How could I have been so stupid_, I asked myself.

"Callie?" Violet's voice snapped me from my thoughts. "What is it?"

"I've got to call Dean." I said.

* * *

**Any predictions?**

**1\. Drive My Soul - LIGHTS**

**2\. Cool Kids - Echosmith**

**3\. Lifeforms - Daughter**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged.**


	28. The Test

**Thanks to the reviewers! You guys responded pretty quickly! xSamiliciousx, nattiebroskette, kitkat1488, ChelleLew, Cougar3371, Westie86, lookitsria, AyeBlaney, Ashes2Dust18, DeeMarie426, Jessipage, Rossi's Lil Devil, Mandamirra10, quidditchandsonicscrewdrivers, and Khaaaaaaan.**

**To those of you who are reading Serendipity, I promise that I will start updating it soon. Once this story is finished, I'm going to start working on that one again. Thank you for your concerns, I promise it wont be long.**

* * *

_"Hey baby."_ He answered the phone like he hasn't been dodging my calls all day. The sound of his voice already lifted a portion of the weight off of my shoulders. I sighed, wanting nothing more than to hear him talk for hours on end.

"Hey." I reply, not sure of what to say next. I hadn't gotten that far. I frantically dialed his number, not even sure if I was even pregnant or not. I momentarily panicked, knowing that I couldn't just up and tell him what was happening without even knowing for sure. "How's work?"

_"Same old same. Been busy as fuck. Sorry for not being able to get back to you, it's just that we've been in and out of interviews and shit, and trying to get sleep on top of that, and a good workout."_ He sighed. _"How are you, Buttercup?"_ I could practically feel him smiling through the phone.

"I'm uh- I'm fine." I said quickly. "Hey, I think we should-"

_"Yeah, I'm coming!"_ He yelled to someone in the background. I sighed, knowing what was coming next. _"Listen, babe, I have to go. I'll call you later."_ Before I could even say goodbye, he had already hung up the phone. He wasn't going to call me back.

Just as I slid my phone in my back pocket, Violet came busting out the front door of the salon. "What's going on?" She asked. "You just up and run out here like a mad woman." I didn't say anything for a minute, only stared ahead at the setting sun. "Callie?"

"I haven't had my period in two months." I said with a flat tone. I could see her face out of the corner of my eye turn from a little angry to shocked in a millisecond. "I don't know why I didn't think of it before when I was sick and moody, but when you asked for a tampon, that's when I realized that I didn't have one because I didn't need them. It explains the funny smells and how tired I've been, and the cravings."

"You didn't use protection?" Her next question was the one that had been running through my mind since the thought conceived in my mind. I shook my head and my shoulders dropped. I really _had_ been naive and stupid.

"I guess I left it up to him." I replied, knowing that wasn't the truth. I didn't leave it up to him, because I wasn't even thinking about it. I guess I figured myself the exception. _I couldn't get pregnant, HA!_ However, the more that I thought about it, the more I started rolling some of the blame over to Dean. He could've put on a condom if he wanted to.

But then again, what twenty-three year old woman isn't on some kind of birth control. What kind of twenty-eight year old man doesn't ask? My mind was racing, imagining all the women he had slept with. I could've easily contracted an STD. _Fuck, I couldn't have been any more stupid. _Violet put her hand on my shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. I bit down on the inside of my cheek to keep myself from crying.

"Let's close up and then we'll go to the pharmacy to get you a pregnancy test, okay?" Violet asked. I nodded. This was all becoming too real, too fast. I wanted to just get in bed and sob into a gallon container of Neapolitan ice cream.

It wasn't even because there was a giant possibility that there was a growing human inside of me. Granted, I was scared. I was _terrified_. But that wasn't it. I had always wanted to be a mother, and even though I pictured myself as a forever-virgin, I still had dreams of having a family someday. No, the reason I was so distraught was because of Dean. Mr. I'm Not Going To Settle Down With Anyone, and how he was going to react. The only scenario I could imagine in my head was him leaving me, which is probably what would happen.

Let's be honest, who could ever imagine Dean Ambrose with a kid? Possibly getting married? Settling Down? No. As much as I wanted that to be true, especially with me, I knew there was a snowball's chance in hell of that ever happening.

I stood in the isle of the pharmacy, looking at all the different colored boxes of pregnancy tests; most of them blue or pink. "Don't worry, I've done this a lot." Violet assured me, but it still didn't ignite any form of hope within me. I gave her a face before she grabbed one of the pink boxes off of the shelf. "I've been in a relationship for seven years, remember? Plan B was pretty much my best friend, but I think you're a little too late for that." She gave me an uneasy smile, I only rolled my eyes. This was no time for snarky comments.

We proceeded to the checkout, and then straight to my apartment. I practically ran to the bathroom, tearing the plastic covering from the box in my hand. The directions weren't hard; pee directly on the stick, replace the cap, and wait two minutes. I positioned myself over the toilet, holding the test between my legs. When I was finished, I replaced the cap and laid it face down on the counter. I didn't want to know until it was time. Anything else would be cheating.

Violet was pressed up against the wall outside my bathroom, waiting. "Two minutes." I told her and made my way into the kitchen to rummage through my cupboards; I was starving.

"Have you called Dean?" She asked, following close behind me.

"He's busy." I said nonchalantly. "It's no big deal. I don't even know for sure, yet." She gave me a look, but didn't say anything as I stuffed white cheddar popcorn in my mouth. I paid her no mind and continued to put my nervousness at bay by eating. It seemed to be the only thing that helped.

After two minutes, we both huddled over the bathroom sink. Violet wanted to be the one to look first, but I wouldn't let her. When I flipped the test over, I saw the confirmation; those two pink lines. As I was expecting my heart to sink, it actually almost fluttered. I tried to hide the smile forming on my face by pulling my lips between my teeth. Every ounce of stupidity that I felt, every bit of regret, it all seemed to dissolve when I got my answer. It didn't matter if I did this with Dean, or without him, I was going to do this. I wouldn't be alone, either. There were people who would support me, and help me, and I _could_ do this.

"You know for sure now." Violet said, not even trying to hide the smile on her face. "You need to make a doctor's appointment, get some prenatal vitamins, 'A Mother's Guide to Pregnancy'. Oh my God, you're going to have to start thinking of new places to live. You can't raise a baby in a one bedroom apartment. You need at least two. What if it's a girl? You should name her Violet! A boy would be so cute, though. Boys are always better in the long run, and he'd have Dean's dimples. Oh my God your kid is going to be so cute. What do you think? Dean Junior? No. What about Ashton? Ashton Ambrose, that has a nice ring to it. Ashton James Ambro-"

"Violet!" I yelled, almost dizzy at her spewing off at the mouth. "One, Dean and I aren't married. Any child we have will have my last name. Two, I have nine months to figure out living arrangements. Let's not rush this, okay? How about you run down to the Steak 'N Shake and get me a peanut butter milkshake and some cheese fries?" She nodded her head profusely as I handed her some cash. "And some chicken strips!" I yelled at her before she left.

I took a seat on the couch and pulled out my phone, staring at Dean's name on the screen. My thumb hovered over it momentarily before pressing the green button. As soon as I heard the first ring, I ended the call. I couldn't do it. I didn't want to hear him tell me over the phone that he didn't want anything to do with this child, or me. Besides, who tells someone their pregnant over the phone? I should probably tell James, but I already know what he'd say.

He'd probably ring me out and hang me up to dry; jump down my throat for being so careless and not thinking about my future. Call Dean every name in the book. I dialed his number and waited for him to answer.

_"James' pimp service, holla for a dolla! This is James, how can I help you?"_

I shook my head and rolled my eyes, chewing on the inside of my lip as I thought of how to tell him. "What are you doing?"

_"I'm about to head over to Alex's. What are_ you_ doing?"_ He asked.

"Are you sitting down?" I asked because I didn't want him to faint, which wouldn't be surprising.

_"Sitting down? Why would I be sitting down? Do you need me to sit down? What's going o-"_

"James, I'm pregnant." I blurted out. He was silent. Dead silent. The kind of silent that was always followed by something awful. I could feel his wrath coming, I was almost shaking waiting for it.

_"What?"_ He asked, like he didn't hear me the first time._ "You're pregnant? Callie you just lost your virginity. You can't be pregnant. Please, tell me you're kidding. This is a joke, right?"_ I pulled the phone away from my ear and made a face, but let him continue._ "Callie, how could you be so careless. Did you just think that because you were the only twenty-two year old virgin in the world that you wouldn't get pregnant? Not to mention all the women Dean's slept with. Dude's probably crawling with diseases."_

"Okay, James. I get it." I replied, not wanting to hear any more of his bad-mouthing.

_"I don't think you do."_ He replied._ "You fight with Dean every other day, and now you're pregnant with his kid? How long do you think that's going to last?"_ Ouch._ "Do you know how much work goes into a kid? You're stuck with it for life. Not all babies come out perfectly healthy. You could have a kid with a serious health problem, and that's a lot of money for the rest of it's life. Are you ready for that kind of commitment, Callie? Because right now you're working at a hair salon, making appointments. You gonna do that for the rest of your life?"_

I definitely didn't expect James to be this harsh. Yeah, he was always my voice of reasoning, but for him to be blatantly rude instead of supportive really hurt. Violet burst through the door with bags of fast food and I silently thanked God. "I have to go, James." I snapped, ending the call quickly before he could say anything else.

"We feast!" Violet said, dropping the food on my coffee table. My mouth began to water at the smell of deep, fried food. I was about to devour those cheese fries. "Did you call Dean?" She asked as she sipped on her milkshake.

"Yeah, he didn't answer." I lied. "It's okay, he's busy. I can't just drop a bomb like that on him while he's working." I tried my hardest to ignore the look she was giving me again. "In other news, James totally doesn't support this."

"He's probably just scared. He doesn't want you to get hurt." She replied with a mouthful of fries.

"Violet, did anyone ever teach you to chew with your mouth closed?" I asked her.

She laughed and shook her head.

I tried to focus on anything else other than the impending conversation I was going to have to have with Dean eventually. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to wait until he got home, I'm sure he'd understand my reasoning for not telling him. I simply didn't want to distract him from his job. He was the top guy in the company, I couldn't have his mind elsewhere and slip up during one of his matches.

James called me back, but I ignored it. I didn't need anything else pulling me down. I wanted to be on cloud nine. Fuck, I was going to be a mom after all. But there was so much grey in my mind keeping me from it, making me second guess myself. It was an awful habit of mine that I wish I could kick.

All I knew was that this would be so much easier if Dean was home.

* * *

**Loved reading your predictions. **

**I had to add this little bridge chapter really quick before we really start moving along. Dean will be back next chapter, I promise. So how many people think he's going to A) be happy about this, B) freak the fuck out and leave, C) tell her to get an abortion, or D) other - explain in review? **

**1\. We Don't Eat - James Vincent McMorrow**

**2\. Small Bump - Ed Sheeran**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged.**


	29. Heartbeats

**To the "Please don't let her be pregnant/There's too many of those kinds of stories out there" reviewers out there, have a little faith in me please. If this was going to be just like all those other stories, I wouldn't have put all the effort into this story to make it different. Just be patient. Of course, if you decide you don't like the way this story is going, you can always stop reading it.**

**With that being said, thanks to the people who reviewed; nattiebroskette, Khaaaaaaan, Cougar3371, quidditchandsonicscrewdrivers, Sadisticdarkstar, kitkat1488, ChelleLew, AngelsDestiny22, xSamiliciousx, Sinistergateslegend, IRENELOVE83, AyeBlaney, and insky5967.**

* * *

I wasn't going to tell him.

I decided to go with my 'I didn't want to distract you while you were at work' speech when he inevitably asked me why I chose not to tell him. The fact that we barely talked in the month he had been gone only validated that as a good choice. He still had a month on the road, and it wasn't getting any easier. Imagine me saying 'hey babe, I'm pregnant! See you next month!' Because that was such a good idea.

Violet went with me to my first doctor's appointment a few days after I took the test. They confirmed the pregnancy, and were surprised due to the abnormal shape of my uterus. Then, I was approximately eight week, and now I was about twelve weeks. Meaning, that around the time Dean got back from tour, I'd know if it was a boy or a girl. Secretly, I was hoping for a boy, preferably one that looked just like Dean, and had none of my physical attributes whatsoever.

There had been no discussion of a name, other than Violet's random suggestions throughout the day. I wasn't trying to think about it too much, but I had pretty much already settled on Jackson James Jordan, after my father and my best friend; whom I was still a little angry at for being so rude. I hadn't thought of a girl's name. Maybe Lily Leigh, keeping up the tradition of alliteration names. Violet seemed to be on board after she found a scrap piece of paper with all of the names I had thought up. She still thought Violet should have been in my top three girl names, preferably number one.

I was already showing, but just barely. Still, I cut my wardrobe down to only elastic band leggings and loose-fitting blouses to keep myself comfortable. All the women at the salon knew, and not because Violet or I had told them, but because I was 'literally glowing'. I didn't see it, because when I looked in the mirror, I saw bags under my eyes from losing sleep because I had to pee constantly. It was getting better, not as frequent, but I still felt like I was constantly going.

Kyle wasn't too thrilled, but he was happy for me nonetheless. I kept thinking about what my parents would think. I'm sure my mother would be happy as a clam, while my dad would brood in a corner somewhere for a few days. It made me sad to think they would never be grandparents, or that my baby would never have a grandma or pa.

"You're coming with me to my check up today, right?" I asked Violet over lunch. One thing that hadn't gone away, the cravings. In fact, they got worse. Oh, and not to mention the dizziness. I couldn't stand up without having to steady myself.

"Yes ma'am." She said as she slurped on her Chinese food. I made a face at her. I couldn't stomach the thought of Moo Goo Gai Pan anymore. "I made sure I didn't have any more appointments, and Janice agreed to watch the front for you. We're all good."

"Today is heartbeat day." I couldn't contain my smile. The thought of hearing the little one's heartbeat for the first time made me ecstatic. "I need you to be there with me to keep me from crying too much."

She laughed. "Shit, I'm probably going to be crying more than you. I don't think you understand just how much I love the thought of babies, and the fact that my best friend is pregnant means the world to me."

"How come you never had any?" It was a question that had plagued my mind for the past few weeks. She always talked about it, and after dating for seven years, it was surprising to me that she and Sam hadn't gotten married or had kids. "You'd be such a great mom. I can imagine you dressing your kid up for Halloween every year, going all out."

"I really would like to, but Sam just doesn't want kids. He's never really explained why, just that he doesn't. It's fine with me, I don't really mind. It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make because I love him." She didn't seem so convinced.

"Does he not want to get married, either?" I blurted. I could tell my question shocked Violet. Hell, it even shocked me. I instantly felt bad for asking. "Sorry, I was thinking." I told her.

"It's okay." She replied, offering me a small smile. "I understand that it's a little strange to be together for seven years without getting married." She shrugged. "Another sacrifice, I guess."

I dropped the conversation and we continued our lunch in silence.

Violet wasn't on board with me not telling Dean. She reminded me of it almost everyday, too. Every morning it was 'hey, have you talked to Dean', and every night it was 'you should call Dean'. She was afraid that by me not telling him, it would makes things worse for when he found out. We both agreed that he probably wouldn't take the news too well. A small part of me still held out hope that he'd get down on one knee and ask me to be his forever.

As we sat in the doctor's office, waiting, Violet was scribbling in a crossword puzzle and I picked at my fingernails. I was nervous and excited, my knees were shaking. After about twenty minutes in that cold waiting room, wearing only a paper dress, there was a loud knock on the door.

"Hello Ms. Jordan!" Dr. Kamiski greeted me warmly as he stepped through the door. "How's my favorite patient doing today?"

Dr. Kaminski was a very happy old man. Violet said that it was probably because he looked at women's vaginas all day long and got paid for it. I told her that in more cases than none, the vaginas he was looking at weren't pretty. He talked too much and too fast, and had a very high pitched voice for a balding fifty year old. It always surprised me to see a married, male OB/GYN. I could imagine being the wife of a man who looked at other women's lady parts for a living.

"Are we ready to hear baby's heartbeat for the first time?" He smiled as he snapped on his rubber gloves. "I know I am!" I nodded excitedly. "Good, let's get you all started then." He grabbed the petroleum jelly from his cart and shook it a few times. "This is going to be cold."

"I'm used to it by n- Fuck! Excuse my language, but it's a lot colder than last time." I yelled, shivering at the ice cold gel he squirted on my lower stomach. Goosebumps formed on my arms. As if I wasn't already cold, that just made it seem like the room temperature dropped ten degrees.

He moved the transducer around my stomach, pressing down gently as he did so. "Alright, if you listen closely, you should be able to hear a beat." He said. I listened as closely as I could, but didn't hear anything. "Should be right around here." Still nothing. "Hang on."

Dr. Kamiski flipped a couple nobs on the ultrasound machine and began searching for a heartbeat once again. He was telling me a story about how this happened to many women, obviously to keep me from thinking the worst. His laugh was nervous as he told the story, and it wasn't helping my nerves any.

"Is something wrong?" I asked, obviously worried that something wasn't right. I knew what a baby's heartbeat should sound like, I watched a million youtube videos. It was a steady, loud beat that was very fast paced.

"Nothing is wrong." He replied. "It's still early, yet. You've been taking your vitamins daily?" I nodded. "Eating healthy? Not giving into too many of those bad cravings?" I nodded again, wondering why he was asking these questions if nothing was wrong. "Well, we'll give it a couple days and have you come back. I'm sure it's nothing. It might just need a few more days to grow stronger."

'I'm Sure it's nothing'? That didn't sound too convincing. I nodded again, not saying anything in order to mask the fear that had come over me. "Just come back in a few days?" I asked him, my voice shaking slightly.

"Yep! I'm sure that little booger is fine in there." He replied with a smile, giving me a slight pinch on the belly. I hoped he was right.

Violet dropped me off at my apartment, making sure I was comfortable before leaving. I walked over to Dean's and grabbed one of his t-shirts, before going back home and crawling into my own bed. The smell of him comforted me, soothed my mind.

It wasn't too late, maybe if I tried calling Dean, he'd actually answer. I pulled my phone out and dialed his number. It rang a few times before going to voicemail. I sighed, disappointed that I wasn't able to reach him again.

"Hey handsome," I said after the _beep_. "I was just calling because I missed hearing your voice, and was wondering how you were doing. I'm sure you're working, so it's no biggie. Whenever you get the chance, give me a call. I miss you! Can't wait for you to get home!" I hung up the phone and placed it back on the bed side table.

I rested my hand on my stomach, softly rubbing my thumb in circles. _I really hope you're okay in there_, I thought to myself before dozing off to sleep.

When I woke up, I felt a sharp, stabbing pain in my lower abdomen. I threw the covers back, only to face a horrible sight. Blood soaking through my crisp white sheets. Not just a little bit of blood, a lot of blood. I reached for my phone on the bedside table, the pain in my pelvic area made me cry out.

_"Hello?"_ Violet asked on the other end, her voice was hoarse.

"Violet." I cried. "Something's wrong."

_"Callie, hang up and dial 9-1-1. They'll get to you faster than I will, okay?"_ She said frantically in the phone.

"Okay." I replied, my teeth grinding from the pain. It was damn near unbearable.

"I'll meet you at the hospital, okay?" She said, and I could hear the jingling of her keys in the background.

The ambulance arrived in less than ten minutes, and the paramedics were banging at my door shortly after. It took everything in me to actually stand up to unlock the door. Each step I took sent a shooting pain through out my entire body. I could feel the blood dripping down my legs.

"What happened?" One of the paramedics asked me, pushing a gurney thought my front door. The swarmed me like a pack of dogs.

"I woke up and there was blood everywhere." I cried. "It hurts."

"Can you sit down?" He asked me, ushering me towards the cot.

I tried to sit down on the gurney, but the pain shot up my spine like a bullet. "No! No! I can't!"

"I'm going to need you to try and lay down for me, okay?." The other paramedic said to me. "I'm going to need a sedative." He said to his partner. "What's your name?" I tried to answer him, but I was crying to much. All that I could get out were stutters and teeth chattering. Instead, I pointed towards my bag, which he handed to me. I pulled out my wallet and handed the man my I.D. "Callie Beth Jordan?" He asked me and I nodded. "Alright, Callie. You're going to be just fine, okay?"

The men strapped me down to the cot, ignoring my cries. With each movement, the pain became worse. It even hurt to breathe. By the time they got me to the ambulance, I had been knocked out. I woke up a few hours later in a hospital bed, unaware of what had happened, or what time it was. My vision was blurry, but was able to focus on the brown and pink hair in the chair next to my bed.

Violet sat quietly, exhaustion plaguing her face, working on the same crossword puzzles she had been trying to solve earlier. I went to speak, but she looked up at me, before the words left my lips. She gave me a sad smile, and reached over to grab my hand. "

"It's okay, Cal." She said softly. "Just go back to sleep, alright? You need to rest."

"Where's Dean?" I asked. All I wanted was Dean.

"I already called him. He's getting on a red-eye. He should be here soon, okay? Just get some rest."

I nodded my head, feeling my eyes roll back and sleep take over.

* * *

**I know I said Dean was going to be in this one, but I figured this one would be better in two parts. In other news, you were all wrong and I'm so sorry.**

**1\. Go Easy Little Doves, I'll Be Fine - Brooke Waggoner**

**2\. O Children - Nick Cave &amp; The Bad Seeds**

**Reviews (and predictions) are appreciated and encouraged.**


	30. How It Hurts Me

**I write really tragic characters, oops.**

**Whatever happened to me alternating updates between BOYL and PC? I'm doing a bad job at that. The inspiration to write is practically flowing out of my finger tips, so I figured I'd give you guys what you want. A million updates.**

**Thanks for the reviews. It seriously makes me happy to know that some of you have to stop what you're doing to read an update. That's like a huge compliment right there. I appreciate all of you; nattiebroskette, xSamiliciousx, quidditchandsonicscrewdrivers, Cougar3371, kitkat1488, Khaaaaaaan, DeeMarie426, AliceJericho, ChelleLew, Mandamirra10, inksy5967, AyeBlaney, Jessipage, 00redvst, Rossi's Lil Devil, and Shield316.**

* * *

_"You lost the baby." _

It was all that I could hear. All that I could think about. Those four words were stuck in my mind like a toxic thorn that poisoned my entire body. My cramps weren't near as bad as they had been, yet I continued to pump morphine in my veins to keep me asleep. I didn't want to think. I couldn't.

Violet had told me that it was a boy, and that he would have fit in the palm of my hand, he was so tiny. She said it with the saddest tone in her voice and a frown on her face. I knew that she was trying to be optimistic, because she thought that would help, but I wasn't in the mood. I felt dead inside.

When I woke up the next morning, a familiar curly, blonde head rested at the foot of my bed. Dean was hunched over in the tiny chair, sleeping soundly, using my bed as a pillow. My stomach flipped at the sight of him. I wasn't expecting him to be here yet. I moved slightly, pulling my feet towards me. The movement must have awoken him, because the next thing I knew, he was wiping the sleep from his eyes; looking at me with the most pitiful look.

"Dean, I-" He shook his head, signaling me to stop. I wasn't prepared to have this conversation. He wasn't supposed to be back for another month.

"Violet already told me." He said sadly. His eyes were glossy. Either he was about to cry, or he had already been crying. Or both.

It was silent between us for a moment. Neither of us knew what to say. This wasn't a situation you wanted to be in with anyone, ever. Especially if you were me, and your significant other was a professional wrestler. "Is it okay for you to be missing work?" I asked, unable to think of anything else. The question was stupid, I knew that. Of course it was okay for him to be missing work. This was a personal emergency.

"Fuck work." He replied. "Why didn't you tell me, Callie?" He asked me, looking straight in my eyes. I adverted my attention to the itchy white blanket that covered me, and silently picked on a stray thread. "Callie." He said again, this time a little louder. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"How could I?" I asked him, throwing my hands up in the air. "Every time I tried to call you, you wouldn't answer. Even if I did get a hold of you, how was I supposed to drop something like that on you when you were at work? I didn't want to distract you from your job. I figured it could have waited a few more weeks."

He stood up, pacing the tiny room that they had me in. His hand reached up to push his hair back. The exhaustion was evident across his features. I outstretched my legs, trying to soothe out a cramp that had formed in my lower stomach. Dean sighed loudly, throwing his hands up in the air like he was trying to tell me that he was at a loss for words.

"Why didn't you use protection?" I asked him, not being able to hold back the tears.

Dean frowned at me before turning his attention back to his pacing. "I honestly thought you would be on the pill." He said, running a hand through his hair. Typical answer from a guy. They just assume the woman is going to take care of everything. Maybe if I had _known_ I would be sexually active within the first six months of moving to Vegas I would've been on the pill. Only I would be stupid enough to think that would never happen.

"I was a virgin, Dean." My voice laced with irritation. I sighed and looked away from him, wiping the tears quickly from my cheeks.

"You can't possibly be trying to blame me for this." He scoffed. "If you weren't on the pill and you knew I wasn't wearing a condom, why didn't you say anything? Pot calling the kettle black, huh?" I wasn't trying to blame him, but if it meant that I wouldn't feel as bad, then yes. I would blame him until the cows came home. Dean crossed the room and sat at the foot of my bed. I pulled my feet up to avoid any physical contact. "Would it have been so bad?" He asked, his voice softened. "Having a kid? We could have done it. I'm more than capable of supporting a- a family."

A sour taste formed in my mouth hearing him say those words. "I can't do this." I told him, looking directly at him. "It's been a long time coming, I mean with you sleeping with someone else and being gone constantly. You're gone what, two months and we talk for maybe an hour all together? This would have never worked anyways. It's probably better this way."

"How could you say that?" He asked.

"It's just how I feel. I don't want to be with you. I think the only reason I ever wanted to be with you is because you were the first guy to ever look at me and make me feel good about myself. Oh, and because the sex was great. But I'm over it now. I'm over fighting with you every five minutes. We're not _together _anyways, so it should be no problem, right?"

He let out a sharp breath, the expression on his face was heartbreaking. "You don't mean it."

"Yeah, I do." I crossed my arms over my chest and looked away from him. "Maybe this is what it took for me to realize it, but yeah, I do mean it. If you could get my things together in your apartment, I'll have Violet come pick them up, thanks."

Dean dropped his shoulders and frowned. "Sure, Callie." He said in a low tone. I met his eyes for a second before I tore them away again. Dean turned on his heel and left the hospital room. The sudden slam of the door made me jump.

Moments later Violet came back in. At the sight of her sad smile, I broke out in a violent cry. She sat next to me, holding me to her, letting me get it all out. She stroked my hair as I cried, my body shaking in her arms. This wasn't what I wanted, but I couldn't stand the sight of him. I knew that it wasn't his fault, it took two, but I couldn't stand to look at him without seeing the image of a dead baby in some hospital trashcan somewhere.

"What happened, babe?" She asked me after I had calmed down.

"I told him it was over." I replied softly.

"As much as I want you to be happy, I think that's for the best right now." She offered me a tissue, I took it and thanked her. "You guys barely got a chance to be friends before you jumped into this, whatever-it-is."

I blew my nose. "Do you think I could stay with you for a little while?" I didn't want to ask, but I couldn't stay at that apartment. Going back there, seeing the blood on the sheets, seeing Dean... It would just be too much. I needed something new. I needed to get out.

"Of course! I've got a spare bedroom with your name on it. Now, you should get to sleep and stop worrying your little mind, alright? You get to go home tomorrow." I shrugged, not really caring. I could stay here and rot in this hospital bed and be fine with it. "Hey, things are going to happen the way they are supposed to happen." Violet told me, squeezing my shoulders softly.

"Vi?" I said to her as she crawled out of the bed. She turned back to look at me and smiled, raising her eyebrows. "Thank you for everything."

She nodded, grabbing a blanket from the chair next to the bed and draping it over me. She gave me a quick kiss on the forehead. "You don't need to thank me, Callie."

I could feel the morphine coursing through my body, making me numb. I smiled to Violet, but I wasn't even sure if she was in the room anymore. I wasn't sure of anything anymore. It didn't take long at all for a deep, dreamless sleep to overcome me.

My dark slumber was interrupted the next morning when Violet loudly pulled up the blinds on the windows. The sunlight flooded my tiny hospital room, illuminating the white walls, white floors, and white counter tops. Everything was white, and it burned my eyes. She yelled a 'good morning' to me in a sing song voice, letting me know that it was time to get up and start moving. I didn't want to move. I wanted more morphine. However, I looked down at my arms to see that there was no longer an IV, no longer a morphine drip, nothing.

I made a face at Violet who was way too happy for a Sunday morning. "Stop." I told her. "Stop being so happy and cheerful. It's not going to make me feel any better, it's just going to make me hate you."

She laughed. "I won't stop, because it's a beautiful day and I refuse to let you give me the cold shoulder. I'm going to just pretend that you're moody because you're tired and I'm annoying you, and not because you just broke up with your boyfriend and went through a tragedy." Leave it to Violet to remind me in the nicest possible way. "I'm here to let you know that you don't have to do this alone. You're going to get up out of that hospital bed and we're going to start moving you into my house."

"I asked to stay with you for a couple of days, not to move in." I mumbled. I don't think I could handle living with Violet year round. Her genuinely optimistic personality and my frumpy, sarcastic one would not mesh well when put in a small house together.

"Nonsense, what's the point in staying with me a couple days? Sam is never home and I get lonely. You're my best friend." She was pouting at me now. Enter the part where I say yes because Violet is the nicest person I have ever met and saying no to her would make my heart hurt. "Besides, I already recruited Dean to help us move."

I spit out the water I was sipping on. "You _what?_"

She gave me an innocent look. "Well, seeing as he has a big SUV and we both have tiny cars, I figured he would be able to help us. He also offered to help." She added. "I think it was just so he could spend some more time with you before he goes back on the road." I sighed dramatically. "What? You guys needed to switch gears somehow! You don't have to jump in the bed with him, just be friends. Friend help friends move."

After I changed out of that God awful paper dress, we checked out of the hospital and made my way to the apartment. Kyle and Dean were already both there, and had already moved all of my big furniture down the stairs. Kyle would be taking over what was left of my lease, it wasn't much, but he would be able to renew if he wanted to. He had been living with his brother and his girlfriend, sleeping on their couch; this would be a major improvement for him.

I lingered in the front seat for a minute, not wanting to get out of the car and face Dean. First I end things, rather harshly, and then I up and move out of my apartment. If that didn't say 'I don't ever want to see you again', I don't know what would. He looked good, which was probably on purpose or I was just reading too much into it. His hair was slicked back and his tan skin was glistening with sweat, and he hadn't shaved.

He smiled at me when I finally decided to get out and gave me a small wave. He didn't say anything though, probably on the account that Violet and Kyle were there, and it would have most likely made the situation a million times more awkward.

"Alright," Kyle started. "All of the big furniture has been moved out. Callie, you're letting me keep the couch and coffee table, right?" I nodded at him. "Okay then, all that's really left are your clothes and other small belongings. "Dean and I boxed up all your DVDs and books, alphabetically, I promise. We even labeled the boxes."

"That was my idea, by the way. Jackass here was about to fuck 'em all up." Dean interrupted. I looked up at him and gave him a small smile before quickly putting my attention back on Kyle.

"So I guess we'll take this load to Violet's and meet you guys there." Kyle finished, wiping sweat from his forehead.

Violet tossed her house key at Kyle. "Don't fuck my house up."

Kyle flashed her a bright smile before climbing in the driver's seat of his truck. It would take both his and Dean's vehicles to move all of my shit out. Not including my mattress, it sat around back next to the apartment's dumpsters. I didn't want it anymore, besides, Violet already had a bed in her spare room. The only things that were going were my dresser, nightstand, bookshelves, TV, and TV stand.

Violet had already made her way to the front of the building, leaving me and Dean standing awkwardly in the parking deck by ourselves.

"Hey." He said softly.

"Hey." This was awkward. I chewed on my lip and tried to look at anything but him, but my eyes kept flickering back to his beautiful blue ones. "Thanks for the help, you didn't have to."

He rolled back on his heels and smiled. "I kind of did. Your friend Violet asked me, and she's really nice, so I couldn't say no." So he didn't offer? Remind me to kill Violet. "Besides, I wanted to see you."

My heart bounced off my rib cage frantically. "Oh." That was all that I could say. "Dean you know it's best if we just stay friends, right? We're not right for each other."

He nodded. "Well, I found these." In his hand were some crumpled up pieces of paper. "They were stashed away in your bed side table. Maybe they'll change your mind. Or at least remind you that maybe we _are." _He placed the papers in my hand and jogged off towards his SUV. Seconds later, he drove off, leaving me standing there alone.

I looked down at what he had handed me; A scrap piece of paper that said_ 'Don't worry kitten, I'll be back before you know it', _a wrinkled postcard from Scotland that said _'Hi, Neighbor'_ with a big blue smiley face underneath. I sighed, not wanting to look at the reminders anymore. He was wrong and nothing was going to convince me otherwise. Especially not some stupid notes he left me because he thought it would be funny to get on my nerves. We weren't right for each other. We would never be right for each other.

I stomped off towards the apartment building to find Violet. Maybe yelling at her for lying to me would help me take my mind off of the fact that I there were constant butterflies in my stomach whenever I thought about him.

* * *

**And you guys thought Dean would be the one who reacted badly...**

**1\. This Time Imperfect - AFI****

**2\. How's It Going To Be - Third Eyed Blind**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged and I love you.**


	31. Trick or Treat

**Thank you guys for reviewing; AliceJericho, Cougar3371, ChelleLew, Mandamirra10, AyeBlaney, HardcoreAmbroseGal89, UntilNeverDawns, Khaaaaaaan, xSamiliciousx, MetalMayhem, fearloathingky, Ashes2Dust18, Jessipage, Rossi's Lil Devil, DeeMarie426, honesteyez, AngelsDestiny22, ph0biafied, Sinistergateslegend, IRENELOVE83, and Ambrose Fan. **

**Here, have another update, you guys deserve it. It's a little long, so brace yourselves.**

* * *

Violet was in full-on panic mode.

Halloween was a day away, and of course, Violet had signed up to throw an extravagant party. Her house was already Halloween themed year-round, one could only imagine how out of hand it got when the actual holiday rolled around. We had spent the entire previous night carving pumpkins. I don't think I'll ever get the orange tint to wash off of my hands. Her pumpkins were all cutesy, little designs like cupcakes and bunnies. Mine, on the other hand, looked like spawns of the Pumpkin Satan.

It was her glorious idea to drive a whopping six hours to Provo, Utah in order for us to pick fresh apples from an actual apple orchard, just so she could make caramel covered apples. Also because she wanted to go on a road trip, but mainly because 'it'll be an experience we'll never forget'. At least that's what she said. I badgered her the entire way there and back, because we could have bought the same apples at the grocery store.

She had plenty of new polaroids to stick on her wall, though.

Violet had said that I was making a 'huge improvement', what ever that meant. In other words, I was moving on. There wasn't any time for me to stop and think about it, because if I did, I'd end up crying until my eyes hurt. It was best for me, and everyone around me, if I put the past where it belonged. Dean had been absent in my life. I expected nothing less. I told him I didn't want to see him, and he wasn't the type of guy to come 'round begging.

"Please tell me you found a costume and you're not actually going through with this two dollar zombie idea?" Violet asked when I emerged from my bedroom. She took today and tomorrow off so that she could prepare for her big party, I still had to go to work.

I walked into the kitchen and propped myself up on the counter. She had just gotten finished swirling the icing on another batch of cupcakes; these were chocolate with purple frosting and sparkly, candy bats on top. I took my finger and swiped off a gob of frosting and licked it off. "What's wrong with being a zombie?"

"It's not a Halloween costume unless you've spent over thirty dollars on it. Putting on gray face paint and homemade fake blood doesn't count. Where's the effort?" She asked. She was taking this too seriously. When I became her roommate, I don't think I knew exactly what I was signing up for.

"I'll have you know that some of my best Halloween costumes were the ones that required little to no effort, thank you." My phone began to ring on the counter next to me. "Shit," I whispered. Violet raised her eyebrows at me. "It's Dean."

"Answer it!" She yelled at me in a whisper. "And put it on speaker phone!"

I rolled my eyes and answered the call, then pressed the tiny speaker button so that Violet could eavesdrop. "Hello?"

_"Hey,"_ His voice was soft, sweet. A smile grew on Violet's face. _"How are you?"_

There were a million things I could have said to him; awful, depressed, full of regret, missing you like crazy, sad, lonely, empty, stupid. The list was a mile long. "I'm fine," was all I said. Violet motioned for me to keep talking. "Uh, how are you?"

_"I miss you."_ He replied. Vi put her hands over her heart and sighed, she was clearly into this way too much. I didn't say anything, though. What was I supposed to say? Not 'I miss you too', even though that's what I was thinking. _"Uh,"_ Dena cleared his throat. _"I was wondering if you wanted to grab lunch or something today?"_

It took no time for Violet to mouth the words 'say yes' to me a dozen times. I pressed a finger to my lips, signaling for her to be quiet. There was no harm in lunch, was there? "I guess, yeah. Lunch sounds nice. I do have to work today, but I get an hour break at one if you want to meet me somewhere."

_"Did you have a place in mind?"_ I could hear that smile again.

"How about Sammy's?" I asked. Violet nodded her head vigorously and I swatted her away.

_"Sounds fine. I'll meet you there at one, then?"_

"Yeah, it's right down the street from the salon."

_"Alrighty then. I'll see you later, Sweetheart."_

As soon as I hung up the phone Violet busted out in a squeel. She was practically doing a happy dance. "We've got to find you something to wear!" She exclaimed, running down the hallways towards my bedroom. She pulled a simple, burgundy dress out from the back of my closet. I wasn't a fan of how my boobs fit in it, which was why I never wore it. The tag was still dangling from the sleeve. She shoved it at me, shooing me into the bathroom.

"But Vi, I don't like the way this dress fits me." I whined.

"Too bad, so sad. It's going to look great." I unzipped the back of the dress and stepped into it, pulling it up over my hips. The problem was it was about a half size too small, and made my boobs look like they were two sizes too big. I opened the door and motioned at Violet to zip me up. It took her a minute, but when she finally got the zipper to the top, she marveled at how it looked. "Girl, that dress fits you just fine." Her eyes were glued to my tits. "Dean's going to _love_ it."

She helped me fix my hair, like she had been doing every day for the past month. She used me as her style guinea pig, because no costumer would let her experiment on them. Most of her creations were nice, like today's, a simple side braid with a black bow.

"Make sure you pick up a costume on the way home." She yelled at me as I was headed out the door.

Work was boring without Violet. The first four hours dragged on as I waited for one o' clock. I felt myself becoming more and more nervous as the clock ticked. I hadn't seen Dean since he helped me move into Violet's, and even then it was extremely awkward after he handed me his old notes that he sent me. I still had them, too.

Violet, even though she agreed with my decision, kept asking me why I decided to end things with Dean. I didn't even know myself. I think that it was something James said, that we fought every other day. That was true, but it was more like every other month. Every time he came home from tour, there was something else to fight about. Some blonde bitch, or something he said to his friends. Yes, I was excited at the idea to have his child, and I wished everyday that I still could, but I couldn't imagine the arguments the two of us would have if there was a baby involved. Not to mention the fact that we'd be stuck with each other for the rest of our lives. Especially if he wanted some form of custody.

When the time finally came for my lunch break, I clocked out and walked up to Sammy's. It was one block away, there was no need to drive. Dean was already there, sitting in the back of the restaurant in a booth. My heart was pounding as I caught sight of him, sitting so casually, like he was the coolest guy in the world in his leather jacket. He stood up once he saw me and offered me a hug. I wrapped my arms around him, feeling my head get light. His cologne made me weak. I noticed his eyes fall down to my figure.

"You look great." He said as we both sat down.

It felt so strange sitting across from him like this. It didn't feel right. Not in a bad way, either. It was more that I knew this wasn't how it was supposed to be. "Thank you, Violet helped me pick it out." This was how it had to be.

"She has good taste." He added, rubbing his hands on his jeans. Was he nervous? "So, what's good here? This is the first time I've ever been here." He held a menu up but I could feel his eyes on me instead. I glanced up at him, but he adverted his gaze down to the menu. I couldn't help but smile a little bit.

"They sell pizza by the slice, and it's absolutely delicious. They also have great pasta dishes and salads." I told him. I looked up at him again, this time he didn't look away and there was a small smile gracing his lips. "Stop it," I whined. "We're supposed to be friends!"

He raised his eyebrows. "Oh _that's _what we are now, huh? And what, I can't smile at my friends?"

"No, you can't." I said sternly.

"Why's that?"

My smile couldn't be contained any longer, so I didn't even try. I shook my head at him, but didn't say anything. The waiter came and took our order, prompting our mood to become more serious and less silly. We sat in silence for a moment before Dean laid his hand face up on the table, motioning for me to hold his hand. I hesitated for a moment before I gave in, placing my hand in his.

"How've you been, Callie?" I thought for a moment as he rubbed his thumb in circles on my skin. "How have you _really _been?"

I knew that 'I'm fine' wouldn't cut it this time. He wanted a real answer. He knew I wasn't fine. Everyone knew I wasn't fine, but they pretended I was because that's what I wanted them to do. "I've had a pretty bad year." I told him honestly, shrugging my shoulders as I did so. "I lost my parents, moved thousands of miles away from my best friend, my apartment was broken into an vandalized, I was fired, I lost my baby, and found out that I couldn't have kids. I haven't been doing fine at all." I didn't want to be having this conversation with him.

"Is that what the doctor said? That you can't have kids?" I nodded. "_Fuck,_ Callie. I'm so sorry." He squeezed my hand gently, his expression torn. He looked more beat up about this than I did.

"Don't be," I told him. "These things happen. Something's telling me that I shouldn't be a mom. Probably not cut out for it anyways."

"If it's any consolation, I think you'd be the perfect mom." He offered. I gave him a sideways smile. "But let's not talk about this sad stuff, alright? How's living with Violet?"

"It's no picnic. Don't get me wrong, I love the woman, but she is so cheerful and nice. Sometimes I just want her to be mad, like just once, but no! She's so happy all the time. I feel like I'm living in a house with fuckin' Snow White."

Dean laughed as out waiter sat our food in front of us. I kept an eye on the time, making sure I still had time to walk back to the salon without being late.

"How's living next to Kyle?" I asked him, not wanting to let the conversation drop for fear that it wouldn't pick back up again.

He chuckled, letting out a low whistle. "Kid's a fuckin' nuisance. He listens to his music loud enough that I'm sure the whole fuckin' building could hear him, and as soon as he knows I'm home he's banging on my door asking for bread or milk or some shit. I'd trade him for you any day."

The forty-five minutes that I had flew by. Dean offered to walk me back to the salon. As we stood outside, I could see all those old women peering out the windows, trying to catch a glimpse of the man I had always talked about. They were all so nosy. Dean took my hands in his and swung them between us.

"Violet's having a Halloween party tomorrow. You should come, if you're in town." I was trying to make progress, here. Go out to lunch, invite him to a Halloween party. Friends did that kind of stuff, right? I looked down at our hands. They probably didn't hold hands, but I'd let that one slide. "You don't have to dress up or anything, I'm probably just going to throw something together last minute."

"Count me in." He replied. "You should probably get inside before all those old ladies start freakin' out." He extended his arms for a hug and I accepted, squeezing him tightly. "I'll see you tomorrow, kitten." He said, ducking his head to giving me a kiss on the cheek.

When I got inside, every woman in that salon was staring at me. Even the costumers. "What?" I asked them, unable to hide the smile that had formed on my lips. They immediately went back to what they were doing, leaving me to my little cloud nine.

I rode that cloud all the way home, too. My smile never faltering. That was until I actually pulled into the driveway and saw the view that was the house. There were fake spiderwebs hanging from the corners of the porch, skeletons were posed all throughout the yard; two of them were sitting on the front steps posed to look like they were making out. There were a million plastic spiders hanging from the webs. I didn't think that she could do any more than she had, but I was clearly wrong.

"Did you get a costume!?" Violet screamed at me before I was even in the door. Kyle looked up at me from the couch, I gave him a small nod.

"_Darn_, I completely forgot!" I replied as I met her in the kitchen. There was at least one good thing about this party other than Dean being there; six kegs sat on the kitchen table along with a slew of black, plastic bags that could have only come from the liquor store. "Guess I'm going to have to be a two dollar zombie. Did Kyle bring all that?" I asked her, motioning towards the booze.

"Don't try to change the subject. If you think you're going to be a cheap zombie, you've got another thing coming. Not in my house, nuh uh! Kyle! Get in here I need your help!" She yelled. Moments later Kyle came barreling into the kitchen. "Can you finish these apples while I help Callie pick out a Halloween costume? It's not hard. Just dip it in the caramel, wait a couple seconds, and roll it in the nuts. Simple."

She left Kyle in charge of the caramel apples and grabbed me by the arm, dragging me back to her room. She was like Bridezilla but with Halloween parties. In the back of her closet was an entire trunk filled with old costumes and wigs and fake, chunky jewelry. I tried to reason with her that I just didn't want to dress up, that I didn't _do _holidays. Hell, I didn't even do my own birthday. She wasn't having any of it. Said no roommate of her's didn't not do Halloween.

"Here," she said handing me some kind of sparkly, blue fabric. "Wear this."

When I unfolded the costume I saw that it was a very short, very sexy take on a Cinderella dress. There was no way this would fit me. Violet was already shorter and smaller than me. This would be too tight _and_ too short. "Woah, I can't wear this." I told her as I held it up to me. "My ass is going to hang out."

"Let it hang out, girl. That thing is nice!" She said. "I'm never going to wear it again, so if you want to add your two dollar fake blood to it, feel free. Dead Cinderella is a way better costume than DIY Zombie." She threw a pair of sky high, glittery, silver heels at me as well. "Don't freak out because there's a corset." A lump formed in my throat. "I'll help you lace it up. If it really and truly doesn't fit, I have plenty more to choose from."

I knew it was going to be awful from the moment she said the word 'corset', so the next night when I stared at myself in the mirror, barely able to breathe, I shouldn't have been surprised at all. Yet, I could not believe I let her talk me into this. I applied the fake blood to my neck and chest. Dead Cinderella didn't look too bad after all.

The party was bigger than I expected. Thank God the house had a huge backyard, because there were too many people to fit inside. Someone had built a bonfire, there was a DJ, people were doing keg stands, there was beer pong being played, and there wasn't a single person without a red Solo cup in their hand. I could see why Violet put so much of an effort into this. There were too many people to disappoint if it didn't go as planned.

I scanned the crowd for Dean, but he hadn't showed up yet. I did a couple shots with Violet who was aptly dressed as a circus ringleader. Her black, sequined shorts showed off her leg tattoos. I then downed a beer, and a few more shots. Dean still was no where to be found. I started getting the feeling that maybe he wasn't going to show up.

Kyle invited me to team up with him in a beer pong match, and seeing as I was already buzzed, I didn't do a very good job. Halfway through, the match, I spotted a familiar face stepping out on to the back porch. I grabbed some random guy dressed as a peanut butter sandwich and told him to take my spot as Kyle's partner.

I sauntered over to Dean, and he had to catch me so that I didn't fall on him. "You look- Wow, you look amazing. Dead Cinderella? This is last minute?" He asked, not able to tear his eyes away from my breasts.

I reached my hand up and placed a finger under his chin, forcing him to look in my eyes. "What are you supposed to be?" I asked, looking down at his grey leather jacket, black tank top and jeans.

"Dean Ambrose, he's this guy from WWE. You've probably never heard of him." He shrugged.

"Oh, I've _heard _of him." I replied, pointing down to his crotch.

He laughed. "How much have you had to drink tonight?"

"Enough." I told him.

"You should probably slow down." He pulled the cup from my hand and brought it to his lips, tipping it upwards. "I need to catch up with you." He took a shot glass from the table and downed it quickly, one after another, after another.

We made our way back to the beer pong table, and once again, I was no good. Dean was spectacular, though, but that was no surprise seeing as he was spectacular at everything he did. The music in the house was loud as we zig-zagged through a mass of costumed drunk kids; Halloween classics blared through Violet's sound system. Dean and I found ourselves in the middle of the living room dancing to 'Thriller'. I felt more alive than I had in a long time as he held me to him, swaying along with the rhythm. I was suddenly taken back to when we had danced at the club all those months ago.

I was becoming dizzy as the song ended. My body was becoming heavy. I grabbed Dean's hand and led him back to my bedroom, locking the door behind us when we got inside. "This dress is so itchy!" I said, reaching behind myself to scratch my back. It was proving to be too much of a hassle and I was still dizzy. "Help me take it off?"

Dean eyed me cautiously, knowing full well that I was completely wasted. He took a step towards me, turning me around so that my back was to him, and leaned me over the bed. He pushed himself into me, closing the space between us and untied the lace on the corset. It loosened enough for me to be able to try and slip the dress over my head. "Arms up." He instructed, and I did what I was told.

The dress wasn't easy to get off. Dean was trying his hardest not to touch the sticky, fake blood that was on my chest, even after I told him it was okay. Once it was off, I fell backwards on the bed, fully aware that I was in nothing but a bra, underwear, and knee-high stockings. I heard him let out a low breath, and looked up at him. "What?" I asked innocently.

"You're uh- you're gonna get that shit on your sheets." He said, motioning towards the fake blood. I could see that his jeans were becoming tighter by the second.

My body was becoming hot, half because of the alcohol and half because I was dripping with desire for him to do whatever he wanted with me. It felt like it had been forever since I had felt him inside of me, and I wanted it more than ever right here in this moment. "Will you clean me up?" I asked with a pout.

"Sure. Let me go get a towel." He replied and took a step backwards towards the door.

"There's no need." I told him, dabbing my finger in the syrup before licking it off. "It's just cherry syrup." I was trying my absolute hardest to be sexy, despite feeling like I was trying way too hard. I wanted him to make me forget everything. He breathed in before letting out a shaky breath. "It's okay," I told him through a smile, reaching my hand out to him.

He crawled on to the bed, situating himself in between my legs, locking them around his midsection. I giggled as his hands made their way up my sides. A dark smile grew on his face as he hovered over me, ducking his head to the crook of my neck; licking and sucking at the syrup. "_Oh my God_," I moaned, arching my back to him.

His lips met mine in a rough, hungry kiss that tasted like whiskey and cherries. I deepened the kiss, letting his tongue explore my mouth. He pulled away, leaving my lips feeling swollen and bruised, and moved back down to my chest. I tossed my head back at the feeling of him sucking at the skin right above my breasts.

"Callie," he whispered. It was barely audible over the music blaring the other room. "We can't do this."

"Yes," I nearly cried, pulling him back down to me by his beater. "We can."

"I don't want you to wake up tomorrow morning and regret doing this with me because you were drunk." I puckered my lips at him, trying to get him to kiss me again instead of talking. "Callie, I'm serious."

I sighed, looking him dead in the eye. "Dean, I've never wanted anyone more in my life than I want you right now. Maybe it is because I'm drunk, but does it matter? We're here now, let's just go with the flow."

He paused for a moment before cupping my breasts. He then completely ripped my bra apart, stretching the fabric until it tore. He attached his mouth to me; biting, nibbling, sucking. He reached down, snapping my garter straps and hurriedly pulled my underwear down to my knees. "You want me?" He asked through gritted teeth. I moved to push his jeans down but he swatted my hands away, pinning them above my head with one hand as he worked on his jeans. "Say it again."

"I want you." I whined. _Oh my God_, I wanted him so much.

Without another word, without wasting another second, Dean slid himself into me. He didn't take his time or allow me to adjust before he began pounding his hips into mine, grinding into me with each thrust. Everything felt so right. I reached my arm back and grabbed a hold of the headboard and held on to it tightly as he fucked me as hard and as fast as he could.

Dean held my head in his hands and kissed me. I moaned into his mouth at the taste. "Fuck!" He whimpered, slowing his pace down suddenly. Moments later, I felt him pull himself out of me. I pouted at him. There was no way he could be done already. "It's been a while, Callie. You haven't exactly been around lately." I still wasn't satisfied. "We always got the mornin', babe."

I nodded, slipping under the sheets. I was too exhausted to take a shower, and besides, there were probably kids making out in there or passed out in the tub. Dean fell beside me, pulling the covers over our shoulders.

I was happy, for now. The question was, would I be in the morning?

* * *

**Callie, as a special request from the person who created you and everyone else in the world, please figure out what you want. On a side note:**** who watched Hell In A Cell!? How about that ending? I've only been waiting for that for a million years.**

**This update's playlist is sponsored by Halloween, and yes, I was listening (and jamming) to all of these while writing this. **

**1\. You Can - Body Language**

**2\. Fall In Love - Barcelona****

**3\. Spooky Scary Skeletons - Brady Scott (the best song ever)**

**4\. ****Seven Devils - Florence + The Machine**

**5\. Thriller - Michael Jackson**

**6\. Ghostbusters - Ray Parker Jr.**

**7\. All I Want - Dawn Golden**

**You reviews are appreciated and encouraged :)**


	32. I'll Try

**Guys... This story has over 400 reviews. Do you know how big of a deal that is to me? I didn't think I'd surpass 50 let alone 400. You are the best readers I could ever ask for and I couldn't thank you enough for giving me the motivation that I needed to start writing again. It's really hard to post something like this online where anyone can come and tell you it's shit. But you guys did the opposite and you stuck with me and you're still sticking with me, and oh my God, just thank you so much; nattiebroskette, xSamiliciousx, alealeale, UntilNeverDawns, AliceJericho, AyeBlaney, Jessipage, Shield316, ChelleLew, DeeMarie426, IRENELOVE83, Mandamirra10, turningthepaige, Rossi's Lil Devil, and the Guest. **

**Don't forget Bored Of Your Love featuring Seth Rollins is now on it's third chapter.**

* * *

My head was pounding.

It felt like someone was taking an axe to my skull, splitting it open like a piece of wood. I had no recollection of the night before. All that I knew was that there was a party, a big one. After the first round of beer pong, things weren't piecing themselves together. My stomach churned and the room was spinning. I had definitely seen better mornings.

I woke up in my bed, that was a good thing. However, I was only wearing my stockings and that alarmed me. Sure, there was a possibility that I could have decided to take off all of my clothes and go to sleep. I'm sure unlacing a corset by myself and also very drunk, was a piece of cake. At least, I hoped it was. I hoped that I didn't sleep with anyone, especially anyone random or worse, anyone that I knew, like Kyle. He was the last person I remember being with. _Oh God, what if I slept with Kyle_.

My eyes searched my room landing first on the costume dress that had been folded and placed delicately on my dresser. The second thing that I saw was the empty condom wrapper that laid on the floor next to the bed. I sighed. For a second there I had faith in my ability to be able to undress myself while drunk.

My reflection made me jump as I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror as I pulled a t-shirt out of the drawer and slipped in over my head. Fake blood was smeared all over my face, chest, and stomach and my hair was sticking out in every direction. Greyish facepaint and black mascara was smeared all over my eyes and cheeks. I really did look dead, only this time I didn't have a cute princess costume to make it any better. I leaned forward, noticing what looked like black makeup on my neck. I rubbed at it, and when it didn't come off, I realized that the marks were hickies instead.

Again, my stomach churned, only this time I felt a wave of nausea come over me. I made a beeline for the bathroom, flipping up the lid to the commode and emptied the contents of my stomach. With each heave of yellow bile, I felt myself becoming more sick. The rotten taste in my mouth didn't help. Seconds later Violet was at my side, holding my hair and rubbing my back. As I began dry heaving, I noticed someone else standing in the doorway, leaning up against the threshold.

"Don't look at me," I yelled at Dean as I hugged the toilet. I could hear him chuckling. When my stomach was empty, Violet handed me a tissue so that I could wipe my mouth. "What are you laughing at?" I asked him as I leaned up against the bathtub. Violet excused herself, scurrying back down the hallway towards the kitchen.

Dean shrugged. "You look like you just climbed out of your grave and you're throwing up. It's actually cute. Your other boyfriends don't get to see you like this, so I feel special." He was handed a glass of water by whom I assume was Violet and handed it to me.

"My other boyfriends, yeah. I don't even have one boyfriend, let alone multiple ones." I said as I sipped on the water.

"You have me." He said nonchalantly like he was the coolest guy in the world, leaning up against the door in his beater and jeans; hair all slicked back like he was in some greaser movie, suggesting that he's my boyfriend like that's not a big deal whatsoever.

"You're not my boyfriend," I said to him as I stood up, brushing past him to grab a fresh pair of clothes from my room.

He stayed on my heels the entire time, watching me as I gathered my things for a shower. "I could be," he said with a twinge of hope in his voice. "I want to be."

My shoulders dropped instinctively. I felt cornered and I hated that feeling. I slept with him last night. If his 'all of the sudden boyfriend' demeanor didn't give it away, then the red stain on his lips did- unless he was wearing lipstick, he had to have been the one sucking the cherry syrup from my boussom. I didn't regret it, but it shouldn't have happened. I didn't want to be with him anymore. I just wanted to be alone.

He opened his mouth to say something else; most likely go off on another tangent about how he wasn't going to leave. I was sick of that speech. The whole 'I'm not going anywhere' thing was getting old.

"Dean," I said to him. I probably looked real menacing right now with my zombie makeup and sex hair. How was I supposed to get my point across when I looked like roadkill. "Get out." His eyebrows came together in confusion. "Just leave. I asked you for space and you're clearly not respecting that, so please just get the fuck out and leave me alone. You're not my boyfriend, and just to make things perfectly clear for you since you don't understand, you're never going to be my boyfriend. I'm sick and tired of being down all the time because of you. How many times do I have to say it? Please, just go."

He didn't say anything after that, just stomped off down the hallway and stormed out the front door. I flinched as the door slammed shut behind him. I let out a heavy sigh and made my way back into the bathroom to take a shower, stalling as long as I could before I had to face Violet. I knew she heard that entire conversation, and I knew she would be sitting at the kitchen table, newspaper in hand and eyebrows raised, ready to barrage me with questions.

"Don't." I told her when I walked into the kitchen, running a towel through my hair. Just as I suspected, Violet was waiting for me. "I know you're a hardcore believer of true love and all that 'fate' bullshit, my parents were too, and I do not want some cliche speech about how we are supposed to be together. We aren't."

Violet didn't say anything as I took a bite out of one of the caramel apples that was left over from last night. The look on her face screamed that she had something to say that was just on the tip of her tongue. I held my hands up in the air, motioning for her to spit it out.

"Do you think that maybe you're being a little too stubborn? I know that's who you are and all, but come on, Cal. It wasn't just you who lost that baby. It isn't just you who feels like they're getting the short end of the stick. He hurt you a few times, I get it. You two either need a long break from each other, or you need to sit down and actually talk face to face without fucking each other. The guy's irresistible, clearly, but if that's all you guys do or if that's how you fix your problems, then you're right. You aren't meant to be together."

"Tell me how to fix it, Vi." My voice was weak. She was right. Everyone was always right instead of me. It was like they all knew me and what was best for me better than I did. I'm my own worst enemy.

Violet stood up and moved to stand in front of me. She placed her hands on my shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze. "No one can tell you how to fix it. You have to do that yourself." She said softly. "But give it a few weeks, okay?"

I nodded as she gave me a soft smile.

"Now, I have to go pick up Sam from the airport." Her tone changed from reassuring to flat in a split second.

"You're not happy about that?" I asked confused. She was always so happy about Sam coming home, but this time things seemed different. She gave me a side smile and grabbed her keys from the counter. I didn't press the issue, figuring that if she wanted to talk about it, she'd say something sooner or later. "Okay, well I'll see you when I get off then."

She waved as she backed out of the front door, leaving me by myself in an empty house. I picked up my phone to call James and tell him about what had just transpired between Dean and I, but then I remembered that he didn't care, and that I had spoken to him since the day I told him I was pregnant. I hadn't even told him that I had lost the baby, yet. He tried hard to get into contact with me; calling, texting, Facebook messaging. But every time he tried, I was either working or helping Violet bake or some other excuse that really wasn't an excuse.

I felt bad for not talking to him, but even if I did decided to pick up the phone the next time he called, what was I going to say to him? I didn't want to have to tell that story all over again. I didn't want to hear from yet another person on how I need to get over myself and fix things with Dean. I _knew _I needed to fix things, but I wasn't the only one. I couldn't do it all by myself! That's what being with Dean felt like. Like it was just me, all alone, while he gallivants around the country with his travelling circus. I didn't want to have to tell someone that, because he'd say just what everyone else says, 'communication'.

As the days passed into weeks, I found myself on a lather, rinse, repeat kind of schedule. I'd wake up, go to work, come home, and get in bed. Sam found a permanent job in Vegas, and was no long required to travel back and forth from Nevada to California. That only shined the light on what Violet and Sam's relationship was really like. Here I was thinking they were the happiest couple you'd ever meet, yet every night that I came home they'd be fighting about something else. He thought she was cheating on him, the house was never clean enough, they didn't have enough money to pay the bills. It was always something with Sam.

Violet never told me how he really was. I stayed in my room away from it, because if I dared to step out he'd have something to say. There were a few nights that I stayed over at Kyle's. I missed my own apartment and Dean was out on the road again. Kyle told me all about Sam, the 'abusive, cheating, son of a bitch' as he liked to call him. Told me about the time Violet was late going out with the group because her make up couldn't cover her bruises. It was safe to say that Kyle hated Sam, and may have even loved Violet at one point. He refused to talk about it, which led me to believe he might actually still have those feelings.

One night after I came home from work, I was ready to head straight back to my bedroom in order to avoid that wrath of Sam. However, when I stepped through the front door there was no yelling, no screaming, no remotes being thrown across the room. Instead, Violet was sitting quietly at the kitchen table, reading the latest issue of Cosmopolitan.

"Where's Sam?" I asked her as I tossed my keys in the bowl by the door.

"Sam's gone." She stated. Just like that, as if it didn't matter to her.

"Gone?" I repeated her words, wondering what she meant. Was he gone to the store or gone for good as in he moved out. I prayed that it was the latter.

She simply nodded her head. "He left." Her tone didn't match the smile on her lips. "He said that he could find someone prettier and smarter and skinnier than me. I didn't argue with him, I let him go."

"Good!" I breathed out. "Violet, what I'm about to say to you, I'm not only saying it because you're my best friend. But you're way too good for that piece of shit. He does not deserve you, okay? You'll find someone ten times better than him, and he might be closer than you think." I added, hinting to Kyle. I wouldn't mind seeing the two of them get together. "You and Sam were together for seven years and that's a long time. You're not going to get over it in the blink of an eye, but please promise me that you will try and see that he was a genuine asshole."

"I will," she replied as she wiped a tear from her cheek. "But you have to try to work on your relationships. Not just with Dean but with James, too."

I held my pinky finger out to her and she wrapped hers around mine. "I promise," we said in unison.

"Netflix?" Violet asked as she stood up from the table. She moved over to the cupboard and pulled out a bag of microwavable popcorn and held it up in the air for me to see.

"Netflix." I confirmed, scooting the chair out from underneath me.

I pulled the blanket off of the back of the couch and curled up in a ball against the arm of the couch. Once Violet was done making the popcorn, she joined me, grabbing her own blanket and settling down in the recliner. It was nice to have the living room back. I pulled out my phone and sent James a quick text, hoping to hear back from him before he had gone to sleep.

It wasn't much, but at least I was going to try.

* * *

**Callie may have turned over a new leaf. Hopefully, I mean even I was getting a little sick of her shit. I get so excited for holidays that I have to write about them like a month in advance, so look out for a Thanksgiving themed update coming up shortly.**

**1\. Afraid - The Neighbourhood**

**2\. Maybe - Lily Kershaw**

**3\. ****Free &amp; Lonely - X Ambassadors**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged!**


	33. Hard To Say

**I got this done rather quickly, I'm surprised at myself. I'm still a chapter behind, so you guys may end up getting 40 chapters after all. Definitely didn't expect that much, but hey. Why not? You guys seem to like it.**

**Huge thank to you, by the way; UntilNeverDawns, nattiebroskette, lookitsria, Jessipage, AliceJericho, Rossi's Lil Devil, ChelleLew, AyeBlaney, Lola, xSamiliciousx, and Shield316.**

* * *

Violet didn't invite Dean to Thanksgiving dinner.

I didn't, because I was banking on her being sneaky and quietly sending him a text without me knowing. I was actually hoping that she did. So when Toby, and Catherine, and Kyle all showed up with casseroles and desserts in their hands- minus Kyle because he couldn't cook even if he tried- I was left the odd man out, once again. I didn't have James, and I didn't have Dean, and I was trying not to think to much about it because the reason I had no one was my own fault.

"You didn't invite Dean?" Violet asked me as I was helping her put the finishing touches on the green bean casserole. Catherine was mixing a bowl of peanut butter cookie mix, she looked up awaiting my answer.

"I was actually hoping that you did." I told her. She gave me a confused look. "It just seems like something you'd do."

A loud yell came from the living room. Violet looked over her shoulder to see Kyle and Toby playing video games. "Quiet down, what do you think this is National Video Game Day? Thanksgiving is about peace!" She shook her head and looked back at me. "Have you tried calling him? Maybe he's in town." She gasped. "Maybe he's spending Thanksgiving alone! You have to call him, Cal."

I looked at Catherine who also nodded at me. "Fine," I said to them as I wiped my hands off and grabbed my phone from the counter.

It was a warm day in Vegas, as usual. November weather shouldn't have been in the low seventies, but I'd take this over Tennessee weather any day. I sat out on the front porch in one of Violet's lawn chairs and pressed the little, green button next to Dean's name. It rang six times and then went to voicemail. I hung up immediately, ready to give up. He didn't answer, meaning he probably doesn't want to talk, right? I couldn't do that, however, because I promised Violet that I would try harder.

In this case, trying harder meant calling him one more time just in case.

_"Hello?" _He asked. Of course I began panicking right away, not having thought this whole thing through. I needed to apologize, but I wasn't going to do that over the phone. Part of me wished he didn't answer so I could just leave him a voicemail. That would have been so much easier and I could still say that I at least tried. _"Callie?"_

"Hey," I said casually. "Uh, are you in town?"

_"Why?"_ The question itself struck me as odd.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to have Thanksgiving dinner with Violet and I, and Kyle too, and his brother, and his brother's girlfrie-"

_"Callie, I'm going to tell you what you told me. We aren't together. So why would I be interested in spending time with you and your friends?"_

That wasn't what I was expecting, but it should have been. I had been a downright bitch to him the last time we spoke. In fact, I've been nothing but a bitch to him since I met him, pretty much. "Right, yeah, it was a stupid question. I'm sorry to have bothered you."

I hung up the phone and stared at it for a minute. Every time we had argued, I still counted on the fact that he was still going to be there. He _was_ always there, he said he was always going to be there. Yet, he wasn't now, and it was my fault. I pushed too hard and he let go. Why would he hold on? Other than the fact that I've treated him like shit for months, I'm nothing but a soggy, wet sack of damaged goods. I have been for a while now.

Violet lifted her eyebrows at me when I came back into the kitchen. Everyone sat around the table as I took my seat next to Violet. "He's out of town," I mumbled to her and I scooped a spoonful of creamed corn on my plate. I could see her frown out of the corner of my eye.

Throughout the entire dinner, I picked at my food; mostly shoving it around on my plate. I wasn't interested in what anyone was talking about. All that I could think about was how I was going to fix this. The first step was admitting I needed to fix it, I did that. The second step is believing that I _could_ fix it. That was a little bit of a problem, because I was thinking in terms of what Dean would do. If I was him, I would cut my losses and move on. He's a great guy and there would be no problem in finding someone who could make him a hell of a lot happier.

I wanted that to be me. I wanted to make him happy, and I could do that if just let go of myself; cut ties with the dead horse that was my stubbornness. The belief that I could fix this stemmed from that. It stemmed from how happy I wanted to make him.

"Kyle," I interrupted whatever conversation was going on. "Was Dean home when you left?"

"Yeah, why?" He asked. I stood up and grabbed a plate out of the cupboard and started piling all kinds of food on it.

"I thought you said he was out of town?" Violet asked me.

I didn't answer either of them, and continued making a plate that would suit a king. When I was finished, I wrapped aluminum foil over the top and grabbed my keys from the bowl. I drove as fast as I could to his place, hoping that he would still be there. When I got there, I let out a sigh of relief to see his SUV in his usual parking spot.

Jose the security guy, was sitting in his booth next to the entrance of the apartment eating a donut. I knocked hard on the door, hoping to catch his attention. "Callie, what are you doing here?" He asked as he opened the door for me.

"No time to explain, Jose." I brushed past him and headed for the elevator. "By the way, you've got a little powder on your chin."

I could hear the game on the television as I stood outside Dean's door. I was out of breath and clammy and nervous. This was life or death- well, maybe not that serious- but either I fixed this, right here and now, or it was over. Sink or swim.

I balanced the plate of food in one hand and knocked on his door. _Play it cool, Callie. Play it cool. Don't overdo it. You're just here to bring him some friendly Thanksgiving dinner and hopefully sweep him off his feet in the process. Just play it cool._

He didn't look surprised at all to see me. He looked more annoyed than anything, but I ignored it; chalking it up to the fact that I just interrupted his football game. "What do you want?" He asked, shifting his weight on to one foot.

"I want to spend Thanksgiving with you." I said as I offered him the plate. "And your birthday, and Christmas, and New Year's, Valentine's Day, Saint Patrick's Day. I want to spend everyday with you, Dean."

He didn't say anything. He took the plate out of my hand and walked back into his apartment, leaving the door open for me to follow. "Turkey, mac and cheese, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes. It looks delicious." He said.

"Violet and I worked hard on it. There was way too much." I replied.

"I appreciate it," he said. "I'll have some later."

Dean sat back down on the couch and turned the volume down on the TV, patting the spot next to him for me to sit down. I did so, searching his face for an expression, wondering what was going through his mind.

"A few months before you moved here, I was in another relationship." He began. "Well, I wouldn't call it a relationship. It didn't last very long. Not long at all, in fact. A couple nights maybe." He scratched the back of his neck, nervously, and I wondered where he was going with this. "She just kind of used me, I guess. I was there, and she had just broken up with her boyfriend, and I had liked her for the longest time."

"That always seems to be where I'm at," he said. "I'm never _the _guy. I'm always the guy you hook up with. It wasn't just that girl, it was every girl. The woman you met, Whitney, she's the same way. That's where you were different. I told you before, the night you went to Raw with me, that I liked that you actually lasted for more than just a couple of nights. You cared about who _I am_ and not how I can get you off or what you can get out of me."

"We should have been more careful doing what we were doing, I know." He told me. "I didn't use protection, and I should have, that was really stupid on my part. But I think a part of me maybe didn't want to, and I understand that we should have talked about it, but starting something _real_ with you would have been totally okay by me. I guess I thought that it would have been okay with you, too."

"It would have." I told him.

"When Violet called me and told me that you were in the hospital, I panicked. But when I got there and they told me _why_ you were there, I was angry. I couldn't understand why you wouldn't tell me. But Violet asked me to hear you out, and said that you had a reason, and after I thought about it, I understood why you waited. You waited because you know that my career means more to me than anything."

"But I wanted to be there for you. I couldn't stand the fact that you were angry at me, or that you hated me, and that you were going through that alone. Do you get it, Callie? It wasn't that I was 'disrespecting' the fact that you wanted space, it was that I could handle not being around you. It drove me fucking crazy. Every day that I'm out there, going from city to city, I miss you. All that I can think about is you. And that's not the easiest thing in the world for me to admit. I don't like feeling like someone has complete control over me, but you do, Callie."

I waited for a moment, just to make sure he was finished talking. "I have no idea what I'm doing, Dean. I'm one big mess, and I didn't know how to handle being with you, so I took it out on you and pushed you away. I'm sorry for that. I moved to Vegas to get away from that tiny, sad town and I never thought that I'd meet someone like you. You know, you never expect things to happen to you until they do, and then you're just lost and unprepared. If I could go back and change everything, I would. But the one thing that I would never and could never change is meeting you, and being with you, and falling in love with you."

He looked at me, and for a moment, I wondered if I had said the wrong thing. "You were always there, and I latched on to you, but it scared the hell out of me. I took you for granted and I came _this close_ to losing you, and it would have been my fault. I don't want you to go anywhere, and I'll never tell you to go anywhere, and please just don't ever leave me."

Dean held his arm open to me and I snuggled into his side. "I don't want to." He said, dropping a kiss on the top of my head. "But, right now I'm hungry so-" He stood up off of the couch, leaving me there, ruining that perfect moment that might as well have come straight out of a romantic comedy film. When he came back, he sat down beside me again and handed me a fork. "Since you made a plate for two."

"I was trying to be subtle." I said with a small smile on my face.

"You walked around my apartment naked for a week. You don't know how to be subtle."

"Shut up," I told him with a mouth full of turkey leg.

"You're gross." He replied, turning the volume back up on the game.

"You love it."

"Yeah, I do."

* * *

**I wasn't crying or anything while I was writing this chapter.**

**1\. ****If I Ain't Got You - Alicia Keys**

**2\. The Last Time - Taylor Swift, Gary Lightbody**

**Reviews are always appreciated and definitely encouraged.**


	34. Make You Happy

**I'm glad you guys are happy with the last chapter. I'm happy, too. ****Thanks to nattiebroskette, UntilNeverDawns, HardcoreAmbroseGal89, lookitsria, AyeBlaney, ChelleLew, Khaaaaaaan, Jessipage, DeeMarie426, IRENELOVE83, Guest, AliceJericho, Rossi's Lil Devil, kitkat1488, labinnacslove, AmbroseFan, reignsbabee, xSamiliciousx, Lilmissmoxley, bella315, Sheild316, and BoGirl11. You guys flatter me with your love.**

**None of you guys were wondering about the girl Dean was talking about in the last chapter? The one he was 'in a relationship that lasted only a couple of nights, but he had liked her for a really long time'? If you're reading Bored Of Your Love, you already know her. ;)**

* * *

_"I miss you." _His voice was low, scratchy.

It was early in Vegas, not even five in the morning. Dean was all the way across the country in Virginia, just waking up. It was the day before his birthday, and I hated that he was waking up alone on this cold, December morning.

"I can't believe you're going to be on the other side of the country for your birthday."

_"I know, but I'll be home for Christmas."_

"Christmas is too far away. I want you now."

Dean left three days after Thanksgiving. I had grown accustomed to sleeping alone, but even just a few days with him felt like an eternity; like he'd never leave, and I would never have to know what it felt like to wake up without his warm arms wrapped around me. He made it a habit to call every morning, no matter how early it would be for me. Of course, I didn't mind. The few minutes that he had as soon as he woke up was the only free time he had during his hectic days.

He begged me to fly out and spend his birthday with him; a night or two on the road, travelling to a couple different cities. I told him that I couldn't, because I wasn't able to get the time off, but the truth was that I already bought my plane ticket. My flight was in a few hours, and I'd be in Virginia before the show started tonight.

It was a surprise, he had no idea, and I couldn't have been more excited.

"You're never going to come back," Violet said to me, not even bothering to look up from her newspaper. She was sitting in her usual spot at the kitchen table, coffee cup in hand. Ever since things between her and Sam ended, she was right back to her normal, cheery self. "I'm going to be stuck here alone, all by myself, with no one."

"I'm coming back." I told her, grabbing a bowl out of the cupboard to fix some cereal. "Besides, you have Kyle." I continued to try and get Violet to stop seeing him as a friend and start seeing him as boyfriend material. Even if he was a rebound, that still meant that he at least had a chance. "Invite him over for Movie Night Monday or whatever it is you guys do."

She sat her newspaper down and pouted at me. "But I'm going to miss you!" Her frown was even bigger now.

"It's two days. Three tops." I told her. "Besides, me going away means you get to help me pack. I know you love doing that kind of crap."

We spent the time we had left arguing over which outfits I should wear. Violet let me borrow the new coat she had bought herself; a long, khaki colored pea coat. It was December in Northern Virginia, after all. The east coast was always colder this time of year. She also let me borrow her black, knee high boots that I loved so much. I packed a couple pairs of jeans, a couple dresses, and some blouses. I had never been an indecisive girl when it came to clothes, but in case we happened to go out for his birthday, I wanted to be prepared.

Violet dropped me off at the airport, leaving me with a big hug at the gate. I boarded the plane, and a few hours later I was touching down in Washington D.C where I would hop on the metro to Fairfax. It was cold and windy in Virginia, and I was starting to hope that I had packed some mittens, or at least a beanie of some kind. I sent a text to James and told him I was a state away. Despite my attempts to reconnect with him, I still hadn't heard anything back. I still tried though, hoping that he would eventually get back to me.

When I finally got to Fairfax, I called Roman- after having to go through his girlfriend, Amanda, to get his number and let him in on the surprise- to find out where Dean was. He told me that they were all at the arena, and that there was a backstage pass waiting for me when I got there. He told me that Dean was completely oblivious, and had no idea that I was on my way. I reminded him to make sure it stayed that way.

"Hi, I'm Callie Jordan." I told the security guard who stood at the back entrance to the arena.

He nodded and handed me the lanyard with my pass on it. I hung it around my neck, and smiled. I felt like some kind of important wrestling person, in my blazer and knee high boots. As soon as I stepped through the doors, I was overcome with the biggest wave of excitement. My knees were even shaking. Roman told me that I needed to follow the signs to 'catering', because that's where they were all going to be. He promised he'd try to keep Dean in one spot for as long as he possibly could.

"Shit!" I cursed as I rounded a corner and bumped into the back of someone. I saw a flash of light, pastel colored, green hair fly by me as I tried to steady myself from falling over. I recognized the girl in front of me from watching Raw with Dean while he was injured. Her name was Andi, if I remembered correctly. "I'm so sorry!"

She looked at me and smiled. "No biggie! I probably shouldn't have been standing there. I was just waiting for someone and I thought you were them coming around the corner." She replied, gazing down to the pass that hung around my neck. "Callie? Wait, are you Dean's Callie?"

I tried to repress the smile that was growing on my lips. People knew about me? That made me happier than it probably should have. "I guess." I said with a small laugh and shrug.

"It's nice to meet you, I'm Andi. I've been a friend of Dean's for a long time." She reached her hand out to me and I shook it. "It's nice to see him finally happy for a change. I swear, he doesn't shut up about you."

"That's a good thing for me, I hope." I laughed nervously. Andi's face brighten up and I saw her smiling at someone behind me. I turned to see Dean's friend, Seth, approaching. I wondered if that was who she had been waiting for.

"Hello, Callie." He smiled at me. "Dean's getting antsy in catering, you might want to hurry up and get in there."

"Right! I should get to that. It was nice meeting you, Andi." I told her, heading towards the catering department. "See you later, Seth."

I walked as fast as I could, following the signs that led me to my destination, ignoring the looks from the production crew and other superstars that lingered in the hallways. When I came to the catering room, I didn't waist anytime stepping through those double doors. Dean was sitting at a table in the corner of the room, next to the giant that was Roman Reigns. His back was to me, so he didn't see me when I entered the room, but Roman did.

"Guess who." I whispered in Dean's ear as I placed my hands over his eyes.

"No way." He said as he pulled my hands from his face and turned to look at me. "Oh my God, I can't believe you're here." He stood up and attacked me in a hug, lifting me up from the ground to swing me around. "You said you had to work!" He sat me back down and gave me a small kiss.

"I lied." I said with a shrug, unable to shake the huge smile on my face. I had missed him so much. Sure, I hadn't seen him in only a week, but it felt like forever. "I couldn't let you spend your birthday alone. What kind of girlfriend would that make me?" Even though I had probably said that word a hundred times over the last week, it still hadn't sunk in. _Girlfriend._ It felt good. I placed my hand on his cheek, standing on my toes to meet his lips for another quick kiss.

"Come with me." He said, taking me by the hand and pulling me out of catering.

I followed him, once again, ignoring the strange looks we were getting from the other people in the room. Roman just stayed where he was, smiling and shaking his head. Dean led me through the hallways until we were far enough away from everyone in a dimly lit corner. He hoisted me up, my legs wrapped around his waist as he held me against the wall. I bit my lip as he looked at me, his eyes shining in the dark.

Nothing needed to be said. I didn't need to tell him that I missed him, he already knew that. He pressed his forehead against mine and smiled. His eyes were closed, but I watched him, wanting to memorize this moment and savor it.

"I just really wanted to do this." He whispered. A second later, his warm lips were on mine, concealing them in a slow kiss. I couldn't help but smile into his lips. I couldn't help smiling in general. "What?" I shook my head in reply, tugging at my bottom lip with my teeth. "What is it, Sweet Cheeks?"

_You. I'm madly in love with you. _"I'm just really happy. Being here with you, just everything."

"I'm sorry that we have to hide in this empty hallway. You're coming back to the hotel with me tonight though, right?" He asked as he set me back down on my feet. "Please tell me you were planning to stay for a few days."

"I was planning to stay for a few days."

"Good." He replied. Two production crew members passed by the hallway we were hiding in. Dean held a finger to my lips as they walked past us, not knowing that we were in the shadows. "We should probably get going." He said quietly before lacing his fingers with mine, leading me towards the stage area.

The show was great being that it was only a house show. I enjoyed it much more than I did when I went to Raw in Vegas. After the show, Roman begged Dean to go out, seeing as we were close to the capital, and there were plenty of bars to 'shut down'. I didn't have a problem with it. It was Saturday night, why not?

The bar was lively. It wasn't upscale, making me happy I didn't change into a dress like I had been planning. We were soon joined by Seth, Andi, and a few other wrestlers and Divas that I hadn't met yet. I sat at the bar with Andi, gossiping about random things that I really didn't care about. Every few seconds I'd nod my head, and say 'yeah' to make it seem like I was listening. I couldn't tear my eyes away from Dean, though, who was across the room with Roman and a couple other guys. His eyes were locked on mine.

He made his way through the crowd and joined me at my side, placing his hand on the small of my back. "Good evening, ladies." He said smoothly. I could smell the alcohol on his breath, but I didn't mind it. It was his birthday. "Gossiping, are we?"

"I was just telling Callie here how crazy you used to be back in the day." Andi replied before taking a sip of her drink. "However, I don't think she listened to a word of it. You two were staring at each other like a couple lovestruck goons."

Dean smiled at me. "Are you ready to get out of here, Buttercup?" He asked in my ear.

I nodded in reply and said my quick goodbyes to Andi. Dean disappeared to let Roman know we were heading out. The Samoan was a little upset that he was ditching his own birthday celebration early, but he understood. I was waiting for Dean in the rental. He climbed in the passenger seat and leaned over the console to place a kiss on my cheek.

"You're beautiful." He said to me as I drove down the busy streets of Fairfax.

I hadn't taken my eyes off the road, but I could see him staring at me out of the corner of my eye. I tried not to think too much about it because it made me nervous. "You're drunk." I reminded him.

"You're still beautiful." He pulled one of my hands from the steering wheel and kissed my palm.

As soon as we stepped through the hotel room door, our lips were on each other's; hungry and desperate for one another. I made quick work of the buttons on his shirt, using it to pull him to me. He ran his hands up my arms before sliding my blazer off my shoulders, dropping kisses on the exposed skin by my tank top straps. We stumbled over to the bed, stripping each other.

I fell first, pulling him with me, our lips only separating while he hovered over me. I reached behind my back to unhook my bra, but he stopped me.

"Don't," he said softly. "Not tonight."

I had to admit that I was surprised. A million reasons ran through my head wondering why he wouldn't want to have sex with me. I chalked it up to the fact that he was drunk, and or tired, or that he didn't want to just fuck while I was here and actually wanted to savor the moment. But that was the hopeless romantic in me, and I squandered that thought almost instantly.

He fell beside me, holding me tightly to his chest; the feeling that I had missed so badly. He sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly. It didn't take long for his breathing to completely even out, and he was asleep in minutes.

"I never thought I would need someone so much as I need you." I said quietly after a few moments of silence, taking his hand in mine and lacing my fingers around his.

When I woke up in the morning, Dean was still sleeping peacefully. I shimmied out of his hold and tip toed to the bathroom, picking up his button-up on the way there. The sun was just barely up on the horizon and we'd be headed towards the next city soon. I stared at my reflection for a moment, running my hands through my messy locks to put them in their place before taking a washrag to my face.

If this was the only time I was going to have with him today, I needed to make the most of it. I didn't have much time.

As quietly as possible, I tip toed back towards the bed. I dropped my underwear on the floor and climbed on top of him as smoothly as I could, my legs straddling his waist. He groaned slightly and peaked an eye open at me. A small smile tugged at the corners of his lips. "Sssssh, go back to sleep." I whispered against his cheek as I placed kisses down his jawline to his collarbone.

I could feel his heartbeat on my lips as I kissed down his chest. I stopped for a moment, placing my ear to his skin and just listened for a moment. After a few beats, I picked my head back up and resumed placing tiny kisses along his abs, and down to the elastic band of his boxers. His hardened cock was just beneath the thin fabric. I ran my fingertips around the tip, teasing him; he let out a growl.

Dean shivered as I gripped him with my hand, mumbling something about how my hands were cold. I swirled my tongue around the tip, tasting the salty precum. Looking up through my eyelashes, I saw Dean staring right back at me, biting on his lower lip. He placed a hand on the back of my head, lacing his fingers through my hair. I slid his tip through my lips, taking all of him in my mouth. Dean let out a short breath, cursing softly. He began to thrust himself into my mouth, slowly at first. I kept up with his pace as best as I could. The only sounds in the room was the faint sucking sound and the soft moans coming from the back of my throat.

I pulled my mouth from him and took my hand to stroke him, twisting and gripping him as his eyes fell closed. I ducked my head back down to him, placing a kiss at the base of his cock. His eyes opened once more, looking at me with more lust than I had ever seen in his eyes. "Come here," he said in a breath. I crawled up to him, leaving a trail running up his stomach with my tongue. His breathing was labored. I could, once again, feel his heart beating frantically as I placed my hand on his chest in order to situate myself over his cock.

His hands slowly worked at the buttons on his shirt that I was wearing; undoing them one by one. I slid myself over the length of him, rocking my hips slowly back and forth. He grunted, trying to stay focused on getting the shirt off. When he finally got in open, he ran his hands over my stomach before gripping my sides, allowing his tip to find my entrance. "Fuck," I swore under my breath as he slid into me slowly.

Dean sat up, tossing his shirt to the floor and moved his hands to unclasp my bra, tossing that to the side as well. Our naked bodies pressed up against each other, holding each other tightly as I rode him. His mouth was on the base of my neck, sinking his teeth into my skin as I cried his name out. He pulled me down to him, covering my mouth with his, allowing his slick tongue to explore my mouth. My moans were muffled by him, making it easier to hear the sound of our bodies coming together.

He placed his hands on my hips, his nails digging into me as he kept me down on him, moving me in circular motions. One of his hands trailed up my sides to my breasts, pinching and pulling at my nipples. He sat up once more, covering them with his mouth. The added sensation only intensified the feeling that reeled inside of me. Dean throbbed inside of me. His whole body was tense. I moved my hips faster, back and forth to the pace he needed to find release.

"Oh my God," he groaned as he slowed me down. I lowered myself to him, laying flat against his chest; rising and falling with every breath. Dean pulled himself out of me and wrapped his arms around my back. I lifted my head to kiss his chin and noticed a smile played on his lips. "Good morning," he said through his smirk.

"Mmm, yes it is." I replied, placing another kiss on his chest.

"I'd hate to ruin it, but we should be getting up." I let out a deep sigh and slid off of him, dangling my legs over the edge of the bed. Dean placed a kiss on my bare shoulder and smiled into my skin. "Would you like to join me in the shower?"

I didn't even answer him, just got up and sauntered my way into the bathroom. Once the water was warm enough, I stepped in. Dean wasn't far behind me. He stood with his back against the water, holding me to him, humming a song as we swayed back and forth under the mist. Dean washed my hair for me, massaging his fingers into my scalp. I made sure to get all the places on his back with the loofah that he couldn't reach. It was a nice start to what I was sure to be a good day.

We were to travel to the next city with Roman and Seth. Roman was groggy when we met him at the rental, and kept mumbling about needing to get some coffee. Seth was wide awake and ready for the day, already having had his morning workout. I didn't see the appeal in waking up at five o'clock in the morning and heading out for a run. But then again, I didn't even see the appeal in running in general.

Dean called shotgun so that he could have control over the radio, leaving me in the backseat with Seth. Despite my first meeting with him, he was much more accepting of me this time. We talked about everything from Harry Potter to favorite superheroes and comic books.

"Conditioner, Seth. It's all about the conditioner." I told him after he brought up the very damaged side of his head after I mentioned Violet being a stylist.

"That's what I tell him." Roman added from the driver's seat.

"Trust me, my roommate is a stylist. A very good one at that. Conditioner, make it your new best friend."

When we got to Greenville, we headed straight to the next hotel room. Roman and Dean would be leaving to go find a gym somewhere and get in their daily work out. Seth offered for me to come with him, Andi, and a few others to explore the new town before they needed to be at the arena, but I politely declined. I would be staying in and catching up on a nap after my workout this morning. Seth and Roman headed inside to take their bags in and get situated, while Dean and I lingered around the SUV for a minute in the quiet parking garage.

He waited for them to disappear inside before his hands found my waist, and he held me up against the car. "I just wanted to tell you that I'm glad you're here." He said as he dropped a kiss on the top of my head. "Best birthday I could ask for."

"As long as you're happy, that's all that matters to me." I told him.

"You make me happy." He replied with a smile. "So when you get on that plane and leave me, just think about that."

"Are you trying to make me feel bad?" I asked as I propped myself up on my toes to place a kiss on his chin. It was as high as I could reach without having to jump.

He clicked his suitcase handle in place and shrugged. "No." He said, ducking his head to kiss my lips. "Yes. Yeah, I'm definitely trying to make you feel bad."

I rolled my eyes as he walked away from me. "It's not going to work!" I called after him as he stepped through the double doors.

I already didn't want to leave, him trying to make me feel bad wasn't going to help at all.

* * *

**I'm sorry that was so long, and filled with so much fluff and smut, and I'm sorry that the ending sucked. I hesitated putting Andi in this chapter, because I didn't want to give away too much to the plot of Bored of Your Love. This story is set a year later, after all. **

**Here's a fun fact, I'm actually going to the house show in Fairfax the day before Dean's birthday. I'm super excited about it. I haven't been to a show in a while.**

**Also, I have finally thought of a plot for Serendipity. The original plot that I had thought up for that story completely fell through. However, I've got a lot of new ideas for it now, so I'll pick that one back up soon. I know some of you have been asking about it, and hoped to see me continue with it. The good news is, I will be!**

**1\. You're In Love - Betty Who**

**2\. XO - Beyonce**

**3\. Right Here - Betty Who**

**4\. Like Real People Do - Hozier**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged. I love you.**


	35. I'll Be Home For Christmas

**If you aren't reading Bored Of Your Love, what are you doing? We're five chapters in! It's starting to get all good and stuff and I'm really proud of it. I'm sorry for pressing the issue! The answer to your questions: yes, Dean was with Andi! And we'll get to that in the next few chapters in BoYL. **

**I'd like to thank those who reviewed, as always, you make me so happy; nattiebroskette, UntilNeverDawns, lookitsria, AliceJericho, IRENELOVE83, ChelleLew, Guest, Rossi's Lil Devil, Lilmissmoxley, AyeBlaney, xSamiliciousx, DeeMarie426, MetalMayhem, reignsbabee, Mandamirra10, and Lift The Wings.**

* * *

Christmas was less than a week away.

It would be a busy week, with the presents that needed to be bought and wrapped, and the decorating that still needed to be finished. Dean was finishing up a round of house shows and would be home by Tuesday. Despite specifically asking me not to, I bought him a gift anyways; it sat wrapped under the tree that Violet and I spent the last two weeks decorating.

It was a Friday night. "I'll Be Home For Christmas" by Frank Sinatra was playing on Violet's gramophone. I was stringing popcorn along a fishing line to hang on the tree. It had always been a tradition for my family. I sent James a picture of my work, along with the caption 'I miss you'. He hadn't replied, still, after all this time. This was something we had always done together, year after year. This year, I sat alone while Kyle and Violet were out picking up some wrapping paper.

Christmas in Vegas was beautiful. I didn't think I would get past the fact that it wouldn't be snowing, seeing as for the last twenty-three years my Christmases have been holed up in my house with footie pajamas and space heaters, because driving on the back roads of Tennessee this time of year would land you in the hospital. There were a thousand tourists spending their vacation on the strip, and everywhere you went there were at least three families making sure to take a picture in front of something they felt was important.

I had gotten used to that warm, desert weather, and found myself using those sweaters I bought at the beginning of the year. Who would have thought, right? I longed for my sandals and bikini; cocktails by the pool, being able to drive down the road with my windows open. I was already ready for June and that 106 degree dry heat.

"Oh my gosh! It's so cold out there!" Violet said as she and Kyle came through the front door; their hands were stuffed with colorful wrapping paper and various other bags.

"What? You guys are lucky, it's 40 degrees in Tennessee right now." I said laughing at the two of them in their scarves and mittens. These Vegas kids didn't know anything about cold weather. "And it's supposed to snow next week there, too. Count your blessings."

"I couldn't do it." Kyle said, dropping the bags by the couch and moving to stand next to the fireplace. "I need the sun blazing, and burning, and feeling like your skin is gonna peel off kind off weather. What is snow? I don't think I've ever seen snow in real life." He grabbed a handful of popcorn from the bowl that I was using and plopped down on the couch.

"So," Violet said as she sat down across from me at the table. "It's just going to be you and Dean for Christmas? You're not flying home to see James, or going to Cincinnati to meet the parents?"

I shook my head. Dean hardly mentioned his family. I doubt he would ask me to go spend Christmas with them. Our plans were simple; ice skating at the Cosmopolitan rink, dinner, and spending the rest of our short time together in bed with each other. "It's just us."

"Well, I was thinking that I could do dinner with my family the day before Christmas Eve. Kyle thought that was a good idea, too. You know, so that we could all be together for Christmas. Because you guys are family, too." She said.

Kyle stood in the threshold of the kitchen and nodded his head. "I was thinking about flying to Phoenix on Sunday instead of Monday, so that I could leave a day earlier." Of course he was on board with anything Violet suggested. It was adorable how chained at the hip he was to her.

"You guys don't have to sacrifice your family time for us." I said in a low voice, surprised that they would even suggest it. I would love to spend Christmas with them. Besides James, who was currently M.I.A, Violet and Kyle were the closest thing I had to family.

"We want to!" Violet exclaimed, grabbing my hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. "Like I said, you two are family now. We love you. And Christmas is supposed to be spent with people you love. I refuse to take no for an answer."

I smiled at her. How could I not agree?

After I was finished with the popcorn on the string, Violet and Kyle helped me hang it around the tree. Of course Violet had to take a picture of us in front of it and hang it on her wall. We watched The Nightmare Before Christmas and The Grinch. I decided to head to bed early so that I could get up and get what I needed done in the morning before I had to work. I still needed to find a nice Christmasy dress to wear to dinner.

_"So we're spending Christmas with Violet and Kyle?"_ Dean asked into the phone the next morning when he called and I told him the change of plans.

"I hope that's okay." I probably should have asked him first.

_"Of course it's okay, Snowflake. They're your friends, and I guess they're mine too, despite Kyle being annoying as shit."_ I laughed._ "We can still go skating and spend time together. And you know I love Violet's cooking, so yeah, it's fine with me."_

I smiled into the phone. "I love you."

_"I love you."_

When I opened my bedroom door, I didn't expect to see Kyle coming out of Violet's room with no shirt on and only in his boxers. His eyes went wide upon seeing me. "Good morning, Kyle." I said as I pulled my lips into a line to keep from smiling. He blushed and disappeared back into her room quickly. As I sat at the table with my bowl of oatmeal and cup of coffee, I could hear them giggling like children down the hallway. I smiled to myself, happy that this was finally happening.

Violet was the first one to come out. Kyle quietly gathered his things and left with a simple 'goodbye'. It was awkward to say the least. Violet sat across from me and held the back of her neck with her hand, letting out a deep breath. Her freshly dyed, auburn hair fell over her shoulder in waves as she tried to figure out something to say.

"You don't need to say anything," I told her before she could speak as I munched on my breakfast and read the news on my phone. I looked up at her and she immediately looked relieved. "I'm the last person you need to explain yourself to. I was kind of pulling for it, though, after I figured out that he liked you."

"I know," she sighed. A small smile tugged at her lips. "I figured that out shortly after you left."

"As long as you're happy, Vi. That's all I care about."

"He makes me happy." She said, unable to control the smile on her face. "He makes me so happy, Cal."

The weekend flew by. The salon had opened up on Sunday to help cut down on the mass of clients we were booking and shifts were longer. The strip was packed. Traffic was ridiculous. The shopping malls were hell, and almost empty. The same songs played on repeat every hour on the hour. This was the part about Christmas that I didn't like. Hot chocolate and sleigh bells were great, with cute sweaters and furry boots. I loved those things, but angry moms and long lines made me crazy.

I had been to a total of nine stores looking for a dress before I found one at Nelly. It was the last one they had, and it was in my size, and I swear at that moment I could have cried. The dress was a long sleeved, body contouring dress with a cut-out back and covered in red sequins. It was utterly perfect. Even the woman at the checkout counter said so.

When I got home, after having to take the long way to beat the traffic, Violet was waiting for me on the couch with a buffet of Chinese food in front of her. She looked exhausted after her ten hour shift at the salon.

"You have no idea how long it took me to get this," she sighed. "The lines are ridiculous this year." I plopped down next to her and grabbed the box of chicken and broccoli. "Did you find a dress?"

"Surprisingly, yes." I said with a full mouth. I hopped up and grabbed the dress out of the bag and held it up for her to see. "It was the last one they had, thank God. What do you think? It looks a lot better when it's actually on."

"I love it. It's very Christmasy. I'm sure it will look great."

I heard my phone ringing on the kitchen table. It was a Tennessee area code. My heart jumped, thinking it was James, and maybe the reason he hadn't gotten back to me was because he had gotten a new number or was having phone problems. That was a completely believable reason. People have phone problems every day.

"Hello?" I asked, hoping to hear my best friend's voice on the other line.

_"Ms. Jordan,"_ My heart stopped. It wasn't James. The voice on the other end of the line was a voice I prayed I would never have to hear again after leaving Tennessee. _"It's Officer Peter McHannon. There's been an accident."_

My phone slipped from my hand and hit the floor. Violet looked over her shoulder at me, her features instantly became concerned. Everything moved in slow motion. Violet left her place on the couch and rushed over to me. My eyes filled with tears as I stood where I was. She picked up the phone and handed it to me. Time began to pick back up and I could hear Officer McHannon through the speaker, asking for me and if I was okay.

I placed the phone back to my ear again and barely whispered, "what happened?"

_"It's James."_

* * *

**This is usually the part where I say something about the chapter, but... I don't have anything other than an apology for it being so short. Let's give a round of applause for Kyle and Violet, eh?**

**1\. I'll Be Home For Christmas - Frank Sinatra**

**2\. White Christmas - Frank Sinatra**

**3\. All I Want For Christmas Is You - Mariah Carey**

**4\. Holly Jolly Christmas - Michael Buble **

**Reviews and predictions are appreciated and encouraged!**


	36. Silent Night

**I'd like to thank AliceJericho, AddictedFanfiction, AyeBlaney, insky5967, nattiebroskette, Sheild316, MetalMayhem, Mandamirra10, ChelleLew, Guest, UntilNeverDawns, Rossi's Lil Devil, Sadistcidarkstar, xSamiliciousx, lookitsria, and reignsbabee for reviewing. You're all so wonderful.**

* * *

"What do you mean it was an accident?"

My best friend was in a coma. My best friend had been beaten within an inch of his life by a group of ignorant, homophobic, assholes. My best friend could die, and it was all an accident. Because we grew up with these kids, because they were star athletes in high school, because their parents had money. It was all a misunderstanding.

The flight to Vegas was long. When I got to the hospital, Joyce Cooke sat in the waiting room, looking almost as exhausted as I felt. She wasn't the first person I wanted to see. When she stood up to talk to me, I demanded her tell me exactly what happened. All that I was told over the phone was that there had been an accident and James had been involved, and it was best if I came home.

"What do you mean it was an accident, _Joyce_?" She was actually defending them.

"They didn't mean to," She said, almost in tears. Surely she didn't believe that. "These are church boys. They didn't mean to hurt him."

My tongue glided over my bottom lip before I bit down on it to keep myself from saying anything else. The more I heard her talk, the more I wanted to knock her teeth down her throat. "Where is he?" I asked her.

She gave me the room number, but not without having to fight her on it; I wasn't Mrs. Cooke's favorite person in the world. I paced outside the room for a moment, not wanting to go in. I wasn't sure what I would see when I did. From what I had heard, it wasn't good. I held my breath as I slowly pushed open the door.

"Oh my God, James." I let out in a breath. His once perfect face was swollen, purple, and dark red. I moved to sit in the chair next to him, and laced my fingers with his lifeless ones. "What have they done to you?" I asked as I brushed his bangs from his face.

The mascara running in my eyes stung like a bitch as I cried. Holding James' hand to my forehead, praying for some type of miracle. Praying that God would save him, bring him back to me. It was three days before Christmas. His birthday was in a week. He would be turning twenty-four. How could someone do this to him?

The door to the room opened and I sighed, wiping my tears out of my eyes. "Please, Joyce, can I just have one moment with my best friend before you ruin it?" I said. Only when I looked up at the person standing in the doorway, it wasn't Joyce. The dark haired boy quickly turned on his heel to exit the room. "Wait!"

He turned back around. I noticed he had a bag of chips in one hand and a can of Pepsi in the other. He wasn't a nurse, or any kind of hospital staff, but I had never seen him before. James didn't exactly have friends. "I'm sorry," he said quickly. " I just ran to the vending machine really quick. I didn't know you were in here."

"You're Alex, aren't you?" I asked him.

"You're Callie." He said back. I stood up from my seat and crossed the room. Without warning, I wrapped Alex in a hug as tight as I possibly could and cried into his shoulder. "It's okay," he cooed as he rubbed my back. "It's okay."

I shook my head furiously. "It's not okay." I cried. "Look at him, Alex. How could someone do that!? How could they hurt him? He's the nicest fucking person I've ever met and I don't understand how someone could do that to him."

"It didn't matter how nice he was. He's different. He's not like everyone else. People don't like different. Especially not people from these parts. They grow up being taught what's good and what's bad from a book that was written thousands of years ago. They don't realize that the world has changed since then." He said. I had managed to calm down some, sitting back down in the chair next to James.

"We had dinner plans, you know?" Alex continued. "I was going to ask him to move to New York with me. He always dreamed about living there. He called me when he left and said he needed to get gas, and an hour later he still hadn't shown up. Two hours, three hours… I didn't even know until I went looking for him. That was when I saw his car at the gas station and the police lights."

"He hasn't talked to me in months." I told him, though I was sure he already knew.

"He wanted to." Alex said. "He felt really bad ignoring your calls, but he didn't know what to say. He felt awful after he said what he did when you told him about the pregnancy." Alex trailed off, his eyes dropped down to where my protruding stomach should have been.

"Yeah, I lost the baby."

"I'm really sorry."

"Don't be."

After a while, I couldn't stand to see the sight of James, laying there on that cot. I joined Joyce back in the main lobby, despite hating her guts. Alex told me that she hadn't even been up to visit James once, since he had been switched to that room. I told him that James wouldn't have wanted her there anyways.

Overhead, more Christmas songs played. I was so sick of them by now. I texted Violet to let her know about James' condition. She wanted to come with me, but I told her to stay. I couldn't drag her halfway across the country with me when she had plans with her own family. I couldn't get in touch with Dean, but it was in the middle of the night, and he was surely sleeping.

"Right now it's just a waiting game." Joyce said to me after talking to the doctor. "You should go get some rest, Callie. You look exhausted. Do you moisturize? If not, you should. It'll help those bags under your eyes."

I let out a sharp exhale. "No disrespect Mrs. Cooke, but I'm not leaving."

"You didn't seem to have a problem leaving ten months ago when your parents died."

"Excuse me?" I asked her after hearing the comment she tried to hide under her breath. "You know what, Joyce? You've always blamed other people for your own problems. It was always James' fault for whenever something didn't go your way. You didn't have enough money to pay the bills? You blamed your son. Your cheating husband left you? Blame your son. Your son gets beat within an inch of his life? It's his own fault, right?"

Joyce watched me with wide eyes. "My parents died, but they loved James as much as they loved me. They loved him more than you ever could. I might not have been there for him these past few months, and believe me when I say that it's going to eat me alive for the rest of my life. But I'm here now, and I'm not going anywhere."

She sighed and sat down, digging through her purse. "Will you at least go get me some coffee from the cafeteria, then?" She jutted a ten dollar bill in my face. "Grab yourself something while you're at it. The longer you take, the better."

_Lord, help James and give me the strength not to bitch slap this woman so hard it'd make her head spin._

"You look exhausted, Callie." I mocked her. "The long it takes the better."

I wish my mom would have slapped her when she got the chance. I wasn't lying when I said that she blamed James for her shortcomings in life. Joyce Cooke was a bigot, and a hypocrite, and she never accepted James after he came out as gay. It was a sin, and God forbid her son fall in love with another man. He had been that way his whole life, it wasn't a secret; but it struck a devilish chord inside of his mother.

Joyce Cooke, the portrait of a small town, backwoods church wife. She wore the cotton white dress and everything, with her shoulder length strawberry blonde hair and face full of freckles; married to the church itself. You would think that someone so in love with God would be more understanding, but not Joyce. Everything was James' fault because he was gay. God himself was punishing her for raising a gay son. It only got worse when Mr. Cooke filed for a divorce. I would have too, if I were him.

I was so caught up in my hatred for the woman that I wasn't paying attention to where I was going and collided into the back of a scrub-clad male nurse who was lingering in the hallway by the cafeteria. "Shit," I mumbled. "I'm sorry." I took a few steps around the guy and started off on my path again.

"Callie?" I heard from behind me. "Callie Jordan?"

My shoulder slumped. Perks of growing up in a small town: everyone knows you. I turned around to meet the man I had just bumped into. "Yeah?" I asked him, not really looking at who he was. I honestly could care less right now.

"It's me Jared." He scratched the back of his neck nervously. "We dated in like tenth grade."

I narrowed my eyes at him. Holy shit, it actually was him. Douchebag Jared in the flesh, a male nurse, of all things. He looked different. Much, much different. He had swapped the scraggly, messy hair for a gelled back, sleek look. His acne was gone. He had somehow managed to grow a good foot taller. He wasn't all that bad looking.

"How've you been?" He asked awkwardly after my silence.

"My best friend is in a coma, Jared. How do ya think I've been?" I turned on my heel to keep walking, but he followed me. I wasn't in the mood for catching up tonight. I had done enough of that with Joyce.

"I heard about James." He said. "I'm sorry for what happened. I can't believe it. We went to school with those guys, Cal."

"I know, I used to do Tyler Hamilton's homework for biology." I mumbled. "I'd really rather not talk about this, Jared. It was nice seeing you and all."

"Wait, you look great." He was really trying hard now. Here I was hoping he'd take the hint. "I heard you moved to Vegas. How's that been? Are you seeing anyone?"

"Yeah, Jared, I am. And even if I wasn't, I wouldn't be interested in a male nurse who I'm sure still lives with his parents over in Willow Branch." I threw the door open to the cafeteria and stomped off, leaving Jared shocked where he stood.

The doctors said that we should all go home. Joyce was the first one to volunteer, complaining about how she missed her bed already. Alex stayed with James, telling me that I should go get some rest. The hotel I was staying in wasn't spectacular; a Motel 6 off the interstate. The room smelled like cigarette smoke, the blankets were itchy, and I could hear the couple next to me fucking every hour on the hour.

I alternated time at the hospital with Alex, giving him the time he needed to go home and shower and change clothes. The look in his eye told me that he didn't want to leave, just in case something happened. I tried not to think about that, though. James was going to be okay. He had to be. Even if it took years.

It was early, Tuesday morning when I got the call. Alex gave me the go ahead to leave, and I did. I guess I didn't think that it would happen so soon. I thought that maybe he actually had a chance. I knew it before I even answered the phone that James was gone. At the sound of the first ring, what little bit of the heart that I had left, felt like it had been pulled right out of my chest.

I didn't move for hours. Just stared at the TV that was replaying a screen of static, because the weather had knocked out the reception for the Dish. I didn't eat, I didn't drink, I just sat there, wishing myself back to February before any of this happened.

Wednesday morning came and went and I found myself driving by the graveyard where my parents were buried. It was Christmas Eve, and I sat outside the wrought iron gates of the cemetery, gripping the steering wheel. A light blizzard had began to fall, and the graveyard was illuminated with dim, orange lamp posts. I sighed, starting up my car and driving through the gates. I hadn't been to visit them since the funeral.

Two bouquets of Calla Lilies sat in front of each of their graves. They were dry, frozen, dead. At least someone was thinking about them. I kneeled down in the snow, dusting off the faces of their tombstones. "Hey Mom." I said, choking on tears. "Hey Dad."

It felt like I could feel them there with me. Like they were smiling at me. I know that's stupid, but the air around me felt warm for a moment. "Why'd you leave me?" I cried. "I wasn't ready for that. I wasn't ready to be by myself. I needed you. I still need you. I don't know what I'm doing. I don't know what to do. Why can't you just help me? Why can't you just tell me what to do?"

My hands shook as I wiped the cold tears from my cheeks. The wet snow soaked through my jeans and my legs were numb. My chest hurt from crying and I couldn't catch my breath. I balled up my fist and hit the ground beneath me, as if it was their fault that all of this had happened to me. It wasn't.

Mom would say that it was coincidence or fate, or Murphy's Law; whatever can happen, will happen. Dad would say that bad things happen to good people, and use Jesus as an example; the man who was crucified for trying to teach and help people. I just wanted to know what did I do to deserve this? I looked up at the sky and white, fluffy snowflakes stuck to my face. I didn't ask for this.

I heard footsteps on the snow and looked up to see Dean standing there. My heart sped up and hot tears spilled from my eyes. I stood up, despite my knees feeling weak and numb, and ran to him; my arms wrapped tightly around his neck as he held me as close as he could.

"Callie you're freezing cold!" He said as I shivered against him. "Let's go, okay?" I nodded to him as my teeth chattered relentlessly.

Dean carried me to the car, turning the heat on as high as it could go. He took off his jacket and draped it over me as I tried to get warm. "H-how'd you f-find me?"

"You weren't there when I got home and Violet told me what happened. I got here as soon as I could and I went to the hospital looking for you." He replied and then let out a low sigh. "They told me what happened, and I thought about it for a minute and that led me here." He was holding my two hands in one of his, trying warm my aching fingertips. "Callie, what were you doing out there?"

"I m-miss them s-so m-much." I couldn't help but start crying again.

"Ssssh, don't cry." He cooed. "Just try and get warm, okay?"

The next day I woke up in my hotel room. It was Christmas. I might have been excited for the holiday a week ago; the thought of waking up next to my boyfriend, walking around in fuzzy socks, and drinking egg nog. In this moment, however, I couldn't have cared less about those things.

Dean was packing up my suitcase as I stared up at the ceiling, not wanting to move. All it took was for me to think about James even for a second and I would start crying again. His birthday was in four days. I should be with him right now, not here in this stupid, uncomfortable motel bed. We should be opening gifts right now in my parent's living room. This was wrong. It was all wrong and I did not want it.

"Stop," I told Dean. He looked up at me with a frown. "Stop packing, I'm not going anywhere."

"Callie, the funeral is tomorrow. We've got to get you home after that."

"This is my home." I said cross the room to stand next to him and began pulling the clothes he had just folded out of my suitcase. I threw each article of clothing as hard as I could at the wall and the suitcase too, after I was done. Dean tried to stop me, but my fists collided with his chest. "I can't leave!" I said through tears. "I thought that I could prepare myself for this by pushing everyone away, by distancing myself and running away from everything. I don't want to lose anyone else, Dean."

"Nothing can prepare you for that." He said. "But you can't stay here, Callie. You need to come home with me, and Violet, and Kyle." I shook my head. "Yes baby, please." He held me to him, soothing a hand over my hair as his voice calmed me. "You still have a family. We're still here."

"I don't want to lose you, too."

Dean let out a long, exhausted sigh. I had expected him to say that he wasn't going anywhere, that this would never happen to him, or Violet, or Kyle, or anyone that I cared about, but there was no way for him to make that promise without lying. That was what I needed to learn; with life, comes death. With life comes heartbreak, and anger, and sadness. But also love, and joy, and happiness.

"Now, put this on." Dean said after I finished crying. He held up a very familiar, sparkly, long sleeved red dress. "We've got a dinner to go to."

* * *

**Only two more chapters left. Maybe three. Are you crying, because I am.**

**1\. Winter Song - Sarah Dawn Finer, Louise Hoffsten**

**2\. Blue Christmas - Paul Anka**

**3\. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - Christina Perri**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged. I love you.**


	37. Let Go

**Before I continue on with this next chapter, I want to thank all of you for amazing, continuous support. I cannot believe that there are 500 reviews on this story. That's a huge deal to me. You all are so amazing, and I don't think that my words accurately portray just how thankful I am for each and every one of you. I started a new job today, and it's extremely taxing on my body. All that I wanted to do tonight was cry, but you guys put a smile on my face. Thank you.**

**Again, thank you UntilNeverDawns, AddictedFanfiction, Julia, Jessipage, lookitsria, AliceJericho, Guest, Khaaaaaaan, ChelleLew, IRENELOVE83, nattiebroskette, ph0biafied, Shield 316, Westie86, StormyCrown, xSamiliciousx, Rossi's Lil Devil, insky5967, MetalMayhem, and Alondra (your review just made my night, thank you so much).**

**Regarding the last chapter: The decision to write James off the way that I did was made before I even started writing this story. Hate crimes against gays have been and still are a huge problem. Another problem, justice not being served because of the race or financial status of the accused.**

* * *

"Surprise!"

To say that I was not in the mood to put on a dress that rivaled a pair of ruby slippers, put on my make up, and go out to dinner was probably the understatement of the year. When Dean said that we had a dinner to go to, I thought he meant that he was going to take me out to some restaurant. However, we pulled up to a small, log cabin in the middle of the woods about twenty minutes out of town.

At first I thought he had rented the cabin and this was some sort of romantic gesture; but the two cars sitting in the driveway suggested otherwise. It wasn't until I stepped through the door and saw Violet and Kyle standing in the living room in front of a huge Christmas tree, that I knew what this was. Lining the mantle over the fireplace, were pictures of Alex and James together. Draped over the back of the sofa was a quilt James' grandmother had made for him when he was a baby. I knew it immediately, because he had had it his entire life.

"I can't cry," I said, trying my hardest to hold back the tears that were so ready to pour from my eyes. "I just put on my makeup." I forced a laugh and a smile, but it didn't help any.

Violet was the first to hug me. She looked beautiful in her red dress, her dark hair was curled to perfection. Kyle enveloped me in a huge bear hug, spinning me around as he did so. Alex was standing off to the side, leaning against the wall to the kitchen with a sad smile on his face. It was obvious that he wished James was here, I did too.

The house was filled with the smell of baked ham, which made my mouth water. I hadn't eaten properly in days. Displayed out on the table were all kinds of dishes. I saw Spanakopita tarts, Alex's mother's own recipe. Violet's apricot and almond stuffing, mashed potatoes, gingersnap sweet potatoes, and a beautiful stuffed crown roast of pork that sat in the middle of the table next to the giant ham.

We all sat around the table, eating and laughing. Well, three of us were laughing; Alex and I just sort of smiled and nodded along with whatever was being said.

"I didn't know you two lived together," I said to Alex, when I finally got a minute with him alone. Violet and Kyle were rummaging around the kitchen, putting the final touches on their desserts. Dean had stepped outside to call Roman and Seth and wish them happy holidays.

"We didn't," he said. "Well, this was my Grandfather's old hunting cabin. He gave it to me when he died and I moved in to be closer to James. He liked to decorate so he put the pictures up and well, I'm not going to take them down now. He was so excited for Christmas. He did all of this." Alex motioned towards all of the decorations in the room.

Dean came back in a plopped down on the couch next to me, ending the conversation with Alex. Violet and Kyle filed in the room next, excited to start opening gifts.

No amount of presents in the world would bring my best friend back, but I still tried to be as happy as I could fake for Dean's sake. He was the one who put this whole thing together, anyways. They all passed gifts around, even making sure that they had gotten something for Alex last minute. As we sat around the living room, Violet handed me a red envelope. On the front, scribbled in black Sharpie, was my name. I knew immediately that it's was Dean's handwriting. He gave me a smile when I looked up at him.

The inside of the card read, _"Whenever you're ready"_ and underneath was the key to his apartment that I had thrown at him in one of our stupid fights. "It doesn't have to be now," he said to me. "As long as it's someday."

There was another envelope inside of the card, very obviously from Ticketmaster. "I swear to God, Dean Ambrose if these are tickets to WWE I'm going to punch you." I worked my nail under the flap and pulled out two tickets to a Guns N' Roses show in Vegas. "You're kidding!"

"I can see that Guns N' Roses is more important than our future," he joked. "That doesn't bother me at all."

"Shut up and kiss me, please?"

Dean draped his arm over my shoulder and pulled me into a sweet kiss. Violet responded with an 'aw' sound and Kyle told us to get a room. I thanked him and then handed him the present that I got for him. "I thought I told you not to get me anything," he said as he shook the box for a minute, trying to gauge what was inside.

"It's just a watch," I told him. "A waterproof watch, because you've gone through like three watches in the past six months because you forget to take them off before you get in the shower." His lips formed into a smile. "I didn't know what to get you, you're so simple."

"Just you would have been good enough." He placed his lips back on mine again. "But thank you, Darlin'."

"Alright! Enough mushy stuff!" Violet interrupted. "It's getting late, I think it's time to start packing up and let Alex have his house back."

I helped Violet box up all the food and wash the dishes. She and Kyle said their goodbyes and headed back to the hotel they were staying at, letting us know that they would be attending the funeral tomorrow. Dean and I lingered behind for a little bit, making sure Alex would be okay and letting him know if there was anything he needed, he shouldn't hesitate to call.

It was late when Dean and I got back to that dingy motel. There still was no TV, one of the lights in the bathroom had begun to flicker. I stood by the dresser, watching as Dean moved to turn on the heat and grab an extra blanket out of the closet. I slipped off my heels, wiggling my toes, and sighed. All that I wanted was to go to sleep.

"Will you help me?" I asked Dean, motioning toward the zipper of the dress.

He stood behind me and slowly unzipped the dress. "I meant to tell you how amazing you looked tonight." His fingers grazed my now exposed skin, sending a cold chill throughout my body. He placed a kiss on my shoulder, and trailed upwards to the skin behind my ear.

"Thank you," I replied softly.

"You don't need to thank me." He took me by the hand and led me over to the bed.

"No," I said as I straddled his hips as he sat on the edge. "I do." He moved his hand up to move my bangs from my face. "I'll move in with you." I was more sure now than ever as I stared into his crystal eyes.

"Callie, you don't have to. I don't want you to feel rushed or pressured."

"I know, and I'm not." I told him, placing a kiss on the tip of his nose. "I want to, as soon as we get home."

Dean pressed our foreheads together and captured my lips with his. He fell back, moving underneath the blankets, inviting me in to the space beside him. He made the hard, stale mattress feel like a cloud as he held me tightly to him. It didn't take long for me to fall asleep.

When the alarm went off the next morning, I groaned, slapping it with my fist.

This was it.

This was the day that I would bury my best friend.

No words were spoken between Dean and I as we got dressed. He asked me if I was going to be okay, but I didn't answer him. Violet had brought me a black dress from my closet, and a coat, along with a pair of tights and gloves. Light flurries were still falling from the sky, making for a dreary yet beautiful December day.

I was surprised to see as many people as there were at the funeral. A mass of black clad men and women, and children, and of course Joyce was there. All of them stared wide eyed as Dean and I walked hand and hand to our seats at the front of the group. I ignored them. These people did not know subtlety. Even Jared stood off towards the back, following me with his eyes. Frank Miller was there, and Stephen, Mr. Cooke and his new wife.

Father Lucas began his speech about how tragic this all was. He was right. There was twenty-four year old young man in that casket, who had his whole life ahead of him. A beautiful, fulfilling life that would have brought so much joy to others. I stared at the white carnations and baby's breath that adjourned James' casket. That was a tragedy in itself. But of course Joyce wouldn't know that James loved Calla Lilies and red roses. She wouldn't know that he wanted to be cremated, and his ashes spread among the Redwoods of California.

When the pastor asked if anyone would like to say a few words, he looked directly at me. I shook my head slightly, not wanting to take the stand, because if I did, I'd end up saying what was really on my mind. Today was about James, not me. Even though he would hate this entire ceremony, I wasn't going to take it away from him.

Afterwards, when the group began to separate, and everyone was shaking each other's hands and giving their condolences, Alex and I stood at the casket. I held his hand, giving it a tight squeeze when I heard him sniffling. "He would have hated this," he said to my surprised as he wiped a tear from his cheek.

I let out a laugh. A few people turned their heads to give me a strange look. "He really would have."

Violet, Kyle, and Dean were all waiting at the car as Alex and I walked along the other gravestones, leaving footprints in the snow behind us. "Look, before you go, there's something you should have." He said as we stood by his car. He opened the door and reach in, grabbing a wrapped gift that was sitting in the passenger's seat. "After you told James about your pregnancy, he started working on this. He finished a few weeks ago and was going to give it to you himself, but-"

"Thank you," I replied, throwing my arms around his neck. "Please don't be a stranger, okay?"

"I won't. I'm glad we actually got to meet." He said.

Saying goodbye to Alex felt like saying goodbye to James all over again. I climbed in the front seat of the rental and waved goodbye to him one more time. I looked at the gift in my hands, deciding whether or not to open it yet. This was the last thing that I had connecting me to James other than memories. I tore off the wrapping paper to reveal a leather-bound journal. _I hope he's not planning on me taking up his writing, because that's not going to happen._

On the first page was a letter, _"Dear little one,"_ It began. I couldn't read past those first three words without feeling like I was going to cry. I closed the book and held it to my chest as I smiled out the window. Dean began driving away. It was straight to the airport from here. I watched as my hometown, my parents, my best friend, everything disappeared behind me on last time. There were no tears. I had a ticket to Vegas, this time, but let go of everything else.

It was time to go _home_.

* * *

**The next chapter is the last one. I can't believe it!**

**Had to get this done before I went to work. You're welcome.**

**1\. Merry Christmas, Baby - Brighten**

**2\. Skinny Love - Birdy**

**3\. Coming Home - Skylar Grey**

**Reviews are appreciated and encouraged and I love you so much.**


	38. With All My Love

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed that last chapter. I'm sorry it was so short, but I'm glad you liked it; kitkat1488, ChelleLew, AliceJericho, nattiebroskette, xSamiliciousx, Sadisticdarkstar, Mandamirra10, Rossi's Lil Devil, DeeMarie426, AyeBlaney, Khaaaaaaan, inksy5967, Megamoo, AddictedFanfiction, MetalMayhem, and IRENELOVE83.**

**Regarding a sequel; I have nothing in the works now for this one. Maybe in the future I might come back to it. Of course I'll let you know.**

**Here we go, the last chapter. I hope you all have enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

* * *

_Dear James, _

_It's been two months since you passed away. Every day it gets a little bit easier, but the knowing that you are no longer with me still crushed me daily. I know you'd tell me to move on, because you're in a good place, with people who love you. I want you to know that I'm trying. _

_When my parents died, I remember looking up this article about what I was supposed to do to help me kind of let go. The first thing was that I should write down everything I remembered about them. I never did that, though... You know know I hate writing. I don't even like to make grocery lists, let alone lists of things I remember about my parents. _

_I guess this time I'll give it a whirl, because I feel like it's something you would like. You're probably laughing at this stupid attempt right now, and that's fine. You used to laugh at everything that I did, and I miss that._

_Let's see, where do I begin? I guess I could start at the earliest memory that I have of you. You were the only kid on the street that was my age, so we ended up kind of being stuck together. We went to the same church, that's what I remember first was being in Sunday school with you and playing Memory. Then we went to the same schools for our whole lives, and had a lot of the same classes. Everyone thought we were dating or going to get married because we were so close. I feel like everything changed when you told your mom that you were gay. Not in a bad way, obviously, but I feel like we got even closer. _

_I remember when my dad bet me that one time that if the Predators won I would have to go fishing with him, and I was so sure that they were going to lose because they were on a losing streak, but they won. So I dragged you out with me, and it was pouring down rain in the middle of the summer, and we were soaking wet, and fishing. Then I fell in the river because I slipped in the mud. You laughed so hard, and I hated you for it. _

_I could never hate you, though. Not even when I thought I was never going to speak to you again, like when you told Jared that I liked him. Or when you "accidentally" knocked me off the tire swing at church and I broke my arm. You were always my number one, through thick and thin. You never let me down and you were always there for me. I don't think I can say the same about myself. I don't feel like I was there for you at all, and I'm sure I let you down more times than I can count. Especially lately..._

_But I don't regret moving to Vegas. I know you wouldn't want me to regret it. It may sound weird, given all that has happened, but I think moving here was the best decision I ever made. Violet and Kyle are my family now. They're dating, too! They make the cutest couple, James, I wish you could see them. I'm still with Dean, in fact, things have been better than ever. Saying that I love him isn't enough. I can't describe it, James. It's so overwhelming and powerful. That sounds cheesy, I know, but it's the truth. _

_We moved in together, back in his little apartment. One day it'll be a house, I'm sure, but right now one bed room is all we need. It's just us, for now. I never got to tell you about the baby. Little Jackson James, after you and dad. It didn't exactly go as planned and I ended up losing him. Or her. I didn't get the chance to find out. It's okay though! If Dean and I ever want to start a family we can always adopt. Alex gave me the book you wrote. I read every single story. One day, I'll be able to read them to my baby, and they'll know just how much you would have loved them._

_Speaking of Alex, he's coming to visit in a couple of months. _

_I miss you more than I can say, and I will always miss you. There won't be a day that goes by where I don't think of you, and smile because I remembered something stupid you did. I know I'll see you again, so I'm not worried about the future, you're up there looking after me... And you're not alone, I'm sure._

_Say 'hi' to Mom and Dad for me, and tell them I said 'thank you'._

_With all my love,_

_Callie._

"You ready to go?" Dean asked as he sat down on the couch next to me. His hair was still damp from the shower he had just taken. Earlier he told me that he had a surprise for me, and not to make any plans for the day. Violet already had me covered, giving me the day off. I'm pretty sure she was in on it. However, I had no idea what was in store.

"Yep," I replied as I folded up the letter I had written to James and slid it into the children's book he had written for me. I leaned over to Dean, puckering my lips as he met me for a short kiss. "I'm a little nervous, though. I have no idea what all this is about."

"Don't be nervous," he replied as he took my hand to pull me off the couch. "You're going to like it, and that's all I'm sayin'."

"Is it a house?" I asked. "Because I just finished unpacking all of my crap from Violet's."

He didn't answer me, though. Leaving me to spend the entire car ride guessing where we could possibly be going. It had to be a house. That's the only thing I could think of that would be big enough to where he wouldn't tell me or even give me a hint. That or he was going to propose, which was doubtful. I'm sure even Dean would think of a more romantic way to propose than in the middle of the day on a Tuesday.

I texted Kyle to see if he had any idea what was going on, seeing as he and Dean had become pretty good friends in the last couple of months. However, he sent me the emoji with the zipper over it's mouth. Violet also swore herself to silence, which baffled me. She was usually the first to fess up if she knew something.

Whatever this was, it was big.

Finally, we pulled up outside of the salon. Dean smiled at me, telling me to stay where I was. I figured he was going to go get Violet, or something, I don't know. At this point I was no longer guessing, and just decided to go with the flow. It was the only way I could calm my nerves down. He rounded the hood of the car and opened my door for me, taking my hand as he guided me to the sidewalk.

"Tada!" He said, holding his arms out. The only thing in front of him was the salon and an empty store-front that had been up for rent for the past four months after the Hallmark moved to another location. Someone must have bought it, though, because the signs were gone.

"I'm not following you." I said to him. "You brought me to work?"

"Shit," he mumbled. "I forgot this." He reached down into his pocket and pulled out a key on a red ribbon. He held it out to me, dropping it in my hands. "Tada! You are now the owner of this space. It's yours to do what you want with it. I think it'd make a pretty good bookstore, though. Don't ya think?"

My eyes widened at him instantly, but he just stood there with a cheeky grin on his face. "You- Wait, y-you rented this space for me to open up a bookstore? Right next to the salon? Are you serious?"

He nodded, seeming proud of himself. I jumped into his arms, wrapping my legs around his waist. "I love you, too." He mumbled against my lips.

Dean sat me back on my feet and I bolted for the front door of the shop. It had the layout of a Hallmark still, but also had the layout to be the perfect bookstore. I walked around, picturing where everything would go, what it would look like when I was finished with it. I gushed to Dean about where I wanted everything; the fantasy section, adventure, romance, mystery novels. To him, I probably looked like a huge nerd. I can see him telling his friends now, "my girlfriend, the girl who owns a bookstore".

"And over here is where we'll sell coffee and stuff, and Violet's cupcakes or whatever she wants to make." I said as I pointed to where the cash registers should go. "We can put some couches over here. You know, make it really comfortable. I don't want it to be like any other bookstore. I want it to stand out, you know?" Dean just nodded his head and smiled.

"So you're happy with it?" He asked.

The question took me off guard. _Of course_ I was happy with it. "Why'd you do this for me?" I asked, moving to stand in front of him. My hands immediately found his belt loops, hooking my fingers in them to pull him close to me. "And don't just say it's because you love me."

He took a step backwards, pinning me between himself and the checkout counter and lifted me up to sit on it so that it was easier to meet his height. "I did it because I knew this would make you happy." His eyes were as soft as ever. He placed a kiss on my cheek. "Because you deserve the world." He kissed my other cheek. "And because I love you." He finally kissed my lips.

"You're too good to me." I told him, my hands tugging at the back of his hair.

He nodded in agreement. "So, what do you say? You want to break this place in?"

"What?" I asked him with a smile.

"You _know_." I knew exactly what he was implying.

"You just ruined another perfect moment because you're a horny, old man." He kissed down my neck, causing my breath to get caught in my throat. "Besides, there are windows." I told him, motioning towards the wide open windows that shined the bright sunlight into the store. "Anyone could see."

"There's a back office." He replied with a smile in his voice.

I looked over his shoulder, just to check and see if there was anyone outside. I didn't want them thinking that two crazy kids broke into the old Hallmark just so they could have sex. "I mean, it _is_ my store now." I said. "Oh, what the hell, let's go."

* * *

**Cue the overly used, cheesy love song about stealing someone's heart... The screen fades to black... The End. ****I hope all of you enjoyed this ending and this story as a whole. I really loved writing it for all of you. You guys have been so great and supportive, and I couldn't thank you enough for all of your kind words.**

**1\. Small Memory - Jon Hopkins**

**2\. Stolen - Dashboard Confessional**

**Thank you all so much.**


	39. Crazy For You

Hey guys! If you didn't already know, I am doing a series of one-shots as a sequel to Paradise City.

They will be under the story titled 'Crazy For You' on my profile, so go check out the first one which is already up.

I'm excited to explore a new chapter in the lives of Dean and Callie as their relationship continues to grow.

I hope to see you all over there, and would love to know what you all think.

Thanks.


End file.
